


Hero's Journey

by PL_Panda



Series: Hero's Trilogy [1]
Category: DCU, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, Young Justice (Cartoon)
Genre: Action, Action/Adventure, Adventure, Alternate ending HOO, Batman is too stiff, Crossover, F/M, Minor Angst, Originally Posted on FanFiction.Net, Percy is a bit op, Percy's family is alive but not here, Sorry I bash batman, YJ season 1, Young Justice Universe is small so I add from general DC universe, bad guys lie, but he will not stay stupid, but in YJ season 3 he is stupid, but not outright god, don't want to spoiler more, gods lie, some hereos lie, superhero
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-08
Updated: 2020-02-07
Packaged: 2021-02-25 13:14:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 25
Words: 173,832
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22496668
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PL_Panda/pseuds/PL_Panda
Summary: After defeating Gaia Percy is being forced to become god, but instead he asks to be sent to the world where no divine can influence him. There, he wanted to lead a normal life, but instead got pulled into world of heroes, super-villains and aliens. Guess there is no rest for the brave. The simple life must wait when both Justice league (with their sidekicks) and The Light want him.
Relationships: Artemis Crock/Wally West, Garth/Tula (DCU), Kon-El | Conner Kent/M'gann M'orzz
Series: Hero's Trilogy [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1618498
Comments: 5
Kudos: 94





	1. End is just new beginning

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry if beginning is crappy, but it improves after first few paragraphs. I hope you like it. Percy will be a bit overpowered, but not from the start. He will cover the heavy-hitter role. I will place him on similar level as wonder woman while on land, but in the sea or ocean he will stand toe to toe with Supes'. Reasoning: they are more or less the same in terms of power source and race/sub-race. Just that YJ world functions in different way. More explained on the 't worry, I will still make it entertaining (or die trying). I am open for suggestions on the plot and pairing. One more thing: I don't own PJO or YJ

**Percy's POV**

_Flashback_

We got to the top of Acropolis and got into the fight with giants. Only reason we were not wiped from the face of earth was because they needed at least two of us alive for the ritual. Shortly after we started losing, there was a loud CRACK! and from the skies came gods in their war chariots. Zeus, Poseidon and Hades in the lead. Now the odds were equal. I joined my father as he was fighting Polybotes. My father distracted him, while I sneaked behind him and pierced his leg with my sword. He fell on one... snake and this gave my father just enough time to plunge trident in his chest. Before giant exploded into cloud of golden dust, Polybotes managed to swing his spear at my father and knock him out.

I wanted to check on Poseidon, but when I turned to see what was going on, I noticed Annabeth down, her head bleeding slightly. Athena was being slowly overwhelmed by Enceladus. Without second thought I run to the place and jumped, using water poodle to launch me higher. I came down on Giant with my sword up. He turned on me to slash me with the tip of his spear, but I predicted it and instead of going for his head, I slashed my sword to deflect his spear. Although I stopped the blade, sheer force was enough for me to get smashed into the ground. I quickly stood up and sent a meaningful glare to Athena. She knew what to do. We attacked at the same time, with her and her spear going for one arm, and me going for another. Why not head? Well, without hand he won't be able to use his weapon. He chose to deflect Athena's spear, but I managed to land a hit, cutting his elbow so deep that his whole arm went numb. Now if you never fought using spear only in one hand, I can guarantee it is hard. Rewarding, but hard. He tried to attack Athena, then me, then Athena, but now we managed to deflect his weakened attacks. Not even one minute passed and he... passed onto the other world (you sea what I did here?) Anyway, after he was down, I ran to Annabeth, but Athena stopped me. She said that she will take her of her, and I should go help the others.

I saw three old ladies clubbing some giant to death with bright pink bags full of yarn. That looked weird. Well, he was bleeding ichor, but he just kept regenerating. Then, I saw his snake legs started to strangle two of the ladies. Without second thought I rushed to them. I sliced one of his leg, and then pierced place where his heart was supposed to be as two old ladies hit him with yarn bags again. He exploded into gold dust, letting third lady fall onto the ground. I helped her stand up. They all looked at me with mysterious glimmer in their eyes and said in unison "thank you Perseus. We will remember your heroic deeds."

That was really weird, but I decided to ignore them. Just as I was looking who to help next, I heard a piercing scream and looked, only to see Hecate impaled on the spear of Clytius. The scream was coming from hazel. As the giant's spear started to cover in ichor, Daughter of Pluto jumped onto Arion's back. I decided not to discuss where this horse came from. She rode with fury in her eyes. She did not hesitate for even a moment before she cut his head off. Hecate's torch, now laying on the ground jerked toward separated body part and managed to light the head on fire and make giant explode. *MAGIC!* I saw Mr. D struggling, fighting twins. Frank was with him, but the two of them were losing. Hazel stopped next to me. "Need a ride?" she asked managing to crook a smile, but only a faint one. I did not speak, only pointed to loosing Mr. D and Frank. She grasped and rode there with me barely holding, and I am pretty sure Arion will not let me forget it. That is if this horse ever stops cursing. I will need to wash his mouth later. I jumped down from the horseback, rolled under the spear of Otis and stabbed him into his guts, only to let Mr. D smack him with his staff. As Otis exploded, His brother screamed. Death of a twin distracted him so that Frank had opening to shoot an arrow at Ephialtes. From nowhere, Ares appeared in his chariot, slashing poor twin.

Nearby Aphrodite and Piper just killed Periboia. I saw Zeus and Jason fight Porphyrion. They were flying around him, throwing lightnings. Then, King of Giants deflected Zeus' lighting and it hit Jason. He was about to hit the ground, but Hera in her chariot managed to catch him. I was already half-way there. Not thinking too much, I threw Riptide at Porphyrion. It was mostly to distract him from killing Drama Queen, so imagine my surprise when the blade sunk into the giant's chest. He started to shimmer gold and blue, just as Zeus detonated him with biggest lightning in the history of lighting. Good thing I managed to run away. After that, I looked around, seeing no more giants and tons of golden dust. You know, I wonder. Is the dust really made of gold? If so, one could collect it and sell, getting really rich.

I felt something wet and hot coming down my face. I was too slow to react before a drop of blood fell from my nose and splashed on the ground. Everything went silent for a moment, and then there was this strong tremor and in front of us stood Gaia. She had body of dirt, but outside of that, she looked quite pretty. Like 40 years old actress. Old, but still has this glimmer.

"I have awakened. Now, I will get my revenge!" She yelled and suddenly, earth below us got soft and started consuming us all.

The gods kept trying to escape, but I instead looked around. Annabeth! If she is still unconscious, she stands no chance to escape in time. Focusing all my strength that was still left in me, I drawn from underground water source, from the nearby sea, even from the air. The normal tug I feel in my gut kept getting more and more noticeable, until finally, I felt like crystal ball shattered inside me, just like back in Tartarus. I felt water coming to me, flying from everywhere possible. Plants withered, drained of all moisture. I felt my control slipping as I devastated rocks trying to contain me. The hurricane forming around me kept getting bigger. There was also an earthquake, but I have no idea if it was me, my father or Dirt face, but honestly, I don't care. What mattered was that I was free. I pulled riptide (which already returned to my pocket) and jumped at Gaia. Her body looked like she was made of the whole planet minus human interference, but I didn't care. I slashed her repeatedly, but she kept regenerating. My hurricane kept tearing her to shreds, but as soon as some dirt got removed, it was replaced by more of it.

"Foolish demigod. Not even gods could defeat me! What chance do you stand? I must say, you impressed me. I will make yet one more offer. Join me, stop this fight and follow my lead. Together, we shall forge new world, a paradise for those we find worthy. Let go of your past." She kept trying to convince me to stop attacks, and to be honest for just small moment I hesitated. Maybe I could have a happy life with Annabeth in this new world... But last part killed it all. Abandoning my past would mean abandoning Annabeth, and I can't do that. With yet new force I attacked Gaia, but this time I started to push her toward the sea. She tried resisting, but no matter what she tried, the hurricane surrounding me and earthquake around us made it impossible for her. Now I was sure that this was either mine or my father's doing, because it did not hinter me in any way. Finally, we got close enough to sea and Tendrils of water grabbed Mrs. Clothes-from-grass and pulled her underwater. With her last breath she sent a colorful string of curses. There, she dissolved while raging currents tore her apart and sent her body into depths. Having no idea what just happened I turned around to see my father free from restrains and standing there with his trident. The light was shining bright. At least for them because I blacked out.

* * *

I've awoken on the floor in throne room in Olympus, with all twelve gods sitting on their thrones. Hestia was still tending the hearth, but she sent me a warm smile. Hades was also there, sitting on throne made of pure shadow. Not as beautiful as other thrones and definitely not as impressive as his throne in the underworld, but it sent chill down my spine. Rest of the seven and Nico, coach Hedge and Reyna were standing in front of them. I decided to stand from the floor and join them. Only then I noticed Hecate sitting in front of the thrones, Ichor still sipping through her wound, but in less amount. I had a feeling it's not good.

"DEMIGODS!" Zeus boomed (I'm on fire with this. Well, that one sounds better when Leo uses it...) "We thank you for what you did for us. The council decided it is only proper for us to reward you for what you did in service of the gods. First, Nico Di Angelo. Step toward." He did as asked and Zeus continued "You see, Hecate was mortally wounded. Under normal circumstances, we would get her healed, but Clytius spear was enchanted. We cannot close her wounds and no amount of bandage works. We can't even stop the pain. There is really nothing we can do to stop her from dying, and unless we do something with her death the Mist will go away. In the name of the council I offer you her place as god of witchcraft, magic, the Mist, crossroads and other things. We will help you weave the mist to make the mortals think like you were always a god of this things. I don't even think there will be any myths needing changing." I watched as Nico stood there, unable to speak. To be honest everyone was like that. None could say a word. That is until Hades nodded to neeks. "Don't fear my son. You will have a place in my palace, and you can join me there full time. You will also retain your title of Ghost king and benefits it bring." The first part seemed like enough to convince Nico.

"I, Domenico Di Angelo, accept the gift of the council and responsibilities of immortal god of all domains that previously belonged to Hecate." Domenico... No wonder he prefers to be called Neeks than his full name. And I thought Perseus is awful.

There was a blast of light and Nico stood the same place, but now dressed in black robes holding torches in both hands, until they changed into stygian Iron blades burning with Greek fire. Guess torch can be just metaphor for anything long and flaming. Hecate smiled weakly. Her godly light was gone, and she was now bleeding dark red blood instead of ichor. "Thank you, young god. I have one last thing to do before I can give my last breath. A promise I made to one of my followers many years ago." She chanted something for a moment before shooting ray of green light toward hazel, who fell on the floor. Suddenly, gold and diamonds started to pop all around her. "I swore to your mother to free you. Now thanks to Percy I can. If not for him, none of this would have ever happen. Thank you, son of Poseidon, for saving us all." And with that last breath escaped her lips and she was gone. Gods flashed her body away, probably to have proper burial soon.

After a moment of silence, Athena stood from her place. "Next! Annabeth Chase, my daughter. You ventured the tunnels below Rome, following my mark alone. When Athena Parthenos was lost, I swore to fulfill the deepest desire of any child of mine who found it. Now you did." For a moment she turned from Annabeth to me and I saw this mischievous smile. It was just like what Wise girl had when enemy followed into her trap. "I offer you to become goddess of Architecture. You already proven your worth rebuilding Olympus. Now, you could inspire architects around the world. being immortal, you could in time rebuild whole world to your wish. Imagine it my daughter. Architects all around the world would follow your guide and build what you designed. You..." I don't know what Athena wanted to say because Annabeth just screamed "YES!". For the second time this day, I felt something inside me shatter, only this time it was my heart. Annabeth Chose architecture over me. I tried to speak, but my throat was suddenly coarse and dry. No sound came out. Athena just smiled evilly and shot small ball of energy at Annabeth. She got engulfed by light and once it died out, she was there, dressed similarly to her mother. "All hail Annabeth, goddess of architecture, trickery and broken hearts." The three fates spoke in unison. On the last part, Wise girl grasped and turned to me. She run to me trying to hug me, but I pushed her away. "Sorry Percy. Forgive me. Please. I don't know what came into me, but hearing my mother say all these things... You know it was my dream to rebuild the world. My hubris took best of me. Please forgive me. We can still be together. I am sure you will have a chance to become god too! I am so sorry..." She started to cry, but I couldn't bring myself to do anything. Seeing I was ignoring her, she flashed away, probably to design her new palace. I just stood there ignoring everything. I did not listen to rest of the ceremony, until I felt someone shaking my shoulder.

My father was standing next to me in his normal form, trident still in hand. I looked up and saw all the other of The Seven standing next to their parents' thrones. Annabeth was also here, smiling at me sadly. I quickly turned my look at Zeus. "Perseus Jackson. You defeated Gaia practically alone. While others could choose their reward, you sadly don't have such option. You've proven a valuable asset to Olympus, but a wild card at that. After you swear on Styx allegiance to Olympus and me, you will become a god." Zeus voice was mostly emotionless, but there was some doubt in it. What? I learned how to read certain emotions, especially when my life depends on it.

"No! I do not want to be a god. I wanted to have a normal life. Be with Annabeth, start a family, grow old. I wanted normal life without gods to interfere in it and fates using me as a play toy. I refuse to become a god or swear anything to you. You are just trying to secure your rule." I spat at him. I felt that the dam I built to stop the emotions started to break.

Zeus rose from his throne and summoned his master bolt. I was ready to get zapped when three hags appeared in front of me. Zeus discharged his lightning, but one of them just raised her hand and lightning dissipated before it managed to hit me. "There is another way, my lord." Said the very one that stopped the lightning. I think it was Clotho. "Grant him his wish. Send him away, somewhere where gods no longer have power. To the world that was abandoned by old divine. Let him live in peace, without 'godly interference' as he called it." I listened, trying to comprehend what I heard. Abandoned world where gods have no power? Too much to figure out on my own.

"Excuse my boldness, but what are you talking about?" I blurted before remembering to control myself.

"We gods exist in multiple dimensions at once. What you see as our divine form is how we truly look. Beings formed of pure energy. When we gather all this energy from multiple dimension in one place, effects can be devastating. We aren't present in every world, because to access them we need an anchor, something to hold us there. Usually, it is the believe of people. There are some worlds we abandoned because the faith diminished, but our essence did not fade from this dimension. We simply let it go. We can try to access one of these dimensions and send you there, but it is one-way trip and almost surely, we won't be able to help you or contact you in any way. On the bright side, monsters will also be unable to follow you there from fear of getting stuck." She wanted to say more, but I interrupted her.

"That is all I needed to hear. I will go there. Just please, give me some means to start a life there. I don't want to end up homeless and I don't really have any formal education finished. Thanks to you I may add." Hermes smiled and snapped his fingers. A package appeared in front of me with words 'open in case of crossing into unknown dimension only'. Very funny (not). I picked it up. I hoped it would contain something helpful.

"I don't like it." Zeus was sitting on his throne looking unhappy. "We might need him in the future. We cannot waste such an asset." I wanted to rage at him, but least expected person did it for me. Mr. D jumped from his throne and summoned his stick/staff looking ready to whack anyone in near proximity, which just happened to be Apollo and Ares. "You should be ashamed father. He saved your sorry ass I don't know how many times. You offered him immortality once and he rejected, in exchange asking us to take better care of Demigods. And what are you doing now? Making him into a weapon, treating him like object not person. Perseus is not someone to just use and store on shelf in case of emergency. I hate his kind. They are lousy, irritating and flawed, but even I can't hate him. Now shut your mouth before I shut it for you, taking some of your teeth on my way. And I am pretty sure I will get support of majority of this council."

I was stunned. Mr. D, well known demigod-hater just defended me in front of Zeus. Ol' Drama Queen looked so shocked (This one was pure gold. Ok. I stole that from Hazel, and it doesn't work...) that he did not even react immediately, and it was I think only thing that saved Dionysus from getting zapped. When Zeus finally spoke, he sounded really resigned. "You win Perseus. The council will send you to this other world, but before that I want you to swear on the river Styx you will never try to return here on your own or do anything to dethrone _me_... I mean us." I agreed and swore the binding oath. Before everything was done, Hades walked from his throne and came to me.

"Thank you from saving my son back in Rome. It's a shame that you decided to go to different dimension, but I have a private thank-you gift." He placed his hand on my chest and shadows broke from his robe and seemed to enter me. I felt small surge of power. "Now you have some of my children's power. I hope they help you in new life. Not too much. More like legacy than full blown demi-god." he then returned to his throne. I really wanted to already be gone, but Athena decided to come to speak to me face to face.

"You know I never approved of your relationship with my daughter. I am sorry that it turned this way. We all thought you will become god as well. Please accept my apology" I really wanted to rage at her, but I just couldn't, because A) she made pretty convincing arguments and B) she looked too much like Annabeth. She touched my head and I felt suddenly some weird data pouring into me. "Here. I finished your education and gave you little extra brain power. Let's hope that you at least don't make all the Olympians look stupid."

"Thank you all for your gifts. And words of encouragement. It's all nice and all, but can I go now? I'm sorry, but I don't want to be here any longer than necessary." I asked with resignation. I came to terms with the fact I will never see any of my friends, but perhaps it is for the best. Their life will be easier without me as a magnet for troubles and maybe they will be happy. I just hoped that in new world I will have new, clean start.

"Just one more favor I wanted to ask you son. You see, we abandoned this world, but some artifacts from our influence remained. One of them is my Trident. Please, find it and keep it. I will be much calmer knowing you wield it and not some mortal. Claim it your own and use it in case of emergency." On that I got worried. If godly artifacts were still in new world, I might still be in danger.

"Now. Everyone said their goodbye and gave their gifts? I want to get this over with and get drunk already" Zeus chimed in really irritated.

"Just me." Apollo raised his hand. "I wanted to give Percy something from me and my sister. Artemis might not express it, but she respects him, which in her language means she is amazed by him. She did not even respect Orion as a person and then there was this one man..." He was about to go into tales' mode, but luckily smack on the neck from Mr. D stopped him. "Right. To the point." He just shot at me with golden energy. Once the light died, I did not feel any different. "The others' gifts were nice, but they think too much in terms of battle which you, let's hope, you won't have to face. I gave you some of my people's skills. you know, the basics. And some musical talent for fun of it." I wanted to thank him, but Zeus lost his patience.

"ENOUGH! He is going right now before you make him a full-blown god." I shivered at the thought, but luckily, I was still human. "Now, begone and live your 'happy simple life'. I don't want to see you here ever again." With that, all twelve Olympians (and Hades) joined hands and muttered something. I saw vortex of blue energy forming under me, bubbling at the edges. Before I fully comprehended what is going on, I fell into the wormhole into brave new world

* * *

I awoke near the sea lantern in some small fishing town. Sitting on the sand I could see the town from here. From the names of the shops I figured I was still in America. Good enough for the starters. I didn't really know what to do. I was really a free man, without anything on my tail, without any Gods pestering, without fates to ruin everything. Live was beautiful for just about 45 seconds. That was enough time for me to start worrying about my future. I picked the package Hermes gave me and opened it. This time, the name said open in this dimension only. Really funny... not. Inside there was a passport, ID card under my name, but stating I was 21. Good thing I can pass as 21 already. There was also a credit card, walled filled with money, but it looked used. There were banknotes of different values and some spare, and even amazon premium membership card. Really smart if you ask me. If someone saw it, it would not look suspicious. There was also folder full of different documents, both real and faked. And some food, nicely folded clothes, and other stuff you would take for weekend trip. One more thing I found was a bag to store some of this stuff in and an envelope. Inside envelope was a letter and photo of Luke. I smiled internally remembering fallen hero.

_Dear Percy._

_I never really got a chance to thank you for saving my son. He died heroes' death and entered Elysium all thanks to you. I learned my lesson more painfully than other gods and promise to honor your wish and force others to do so as well. I will take care of your family, so don't worry. I own successful company and I don't have anything to do with money anyway, so at least I can share some with them. Don't worry, they will never learn of it because I heard from Poseidon what happened last time, he made offer to help Sally in any way._

_The walled and bag are enchanted to return to you if you ever lost it or it got stolen. The credit card is platinum version of Lotus Casino credit card. I snatched it on last guys' night out with Apollo and the boys. It will not run out of funds, but be careful not to use it in any ATM. The wallet will refill itself monthly. Consider it your retirement pension. It's not like demigods have good retirement program. I just hope my spells work in the other world. Word of warning: this world does not have mist since Hecate left, so be careful with power shows._

_Good luck in your new life._

_Hermes_

The first aid kit contained supply of Ambrosia and Nectar and I was pretty sure it was supposed to never run out. I sat on the beach for some time just breathing the sea breeze and resting, until my stomach started to remind me that I haven't eaten anything gods know how long. I stood up gathering my things and walked to the nearest restaurant. On the window was big sign: "Dish of the day: Fish&Chips." If not for the typical American interior, I would have thought I landed in England by mistake. I entered and sat in one table. In the booth next to mine sat some guy in orange suit made of scales. If not for the fact that I was 99% sure there was no gods in this world, I would think some half-brother of mine came to get some "mortal food"

"What can I get you sweetie?" A pretty waitress came to my table holding notebook.

"What dish in the menu does not contain fish?" It's not that I am against eating fish as whole. More like personal preference. It's just that it feels weird eat something that not so long could talk to you. I was friends with some sea animals back home. It just feels weird.

"Oh! You don't have to worry. I don't really talk to fish. I have no problems with eating them." The man in scale armor chimed in, showing me a plate with half-eaten dish of the day.

"Excuse me, but who are you again?" I tried being polite, but honestly at that point I was so hungry I was getting irritated. This man seemed a bit too full of himself.

"You don't know me? I am Aquaman, king of Atlantis, one of..." He wanted to trail off, but I couldn't hold it any longer and just laughed.

"You? King of Atlantis? Yeah right! And what next? Small green Martians attack the earth?" I started laughing uncontrollably. The idea of some mortal ruling in my father's place was just too ridiculous. Only after I calmed down, I saw people looking at me with worry. I guessed it is normal in this dimension to make such claims. He looked confused by my laugh. "You did not hear about me? What about Justice League? Surely you must have heard about us."

This killed my laughter. "Look man. I just got to this town. I have no idea what circus you work at, but that is none of my business. I just want to have normal life, without others pestering about it." I was starting to get irritated with him. His arrogance was reminding me about ol' Drama Queen.

He seemed taken aback by my mood swing and lack of knowledge. "How could you not even hear about The Justice League? Who are you even?" I looked at small crowd gathering around us. Well, that's about it regarding staying in this town.

"I really don't care who you are. I just want to have normal life. Leave me be and I will do the same with you." I turned and tried walking away, but he stopped me, Grabbing my shoulder.

My had intuitively went to my pocket to grab riptide, responding to hostile action. Sadly, stranger did not take it as gesture of good will and instead assumed I want to pull out some knife or something. He quickly grabbed My hand and tried to stop me. Unfortunately for him, my battle reflex kicked in and before he even finished the move, I pulled riptide and uncapped it. Taking advantage of confusion I caused him, I charged, trying to knock him down and make my exit, but he was faster than any mortal I met, making me question if he was just a mortal. Gods promised this world was empty of divine influence (minus few artifacts of passed age), but they lied before. He blocked my strike with his armored gauntlet, sending riptide away and breaking the window in the process. I jumped back to make distance and create some plan. He did not give me chance to analyze the situation properly, instead he went for a punch. I ducked and answered with my own strike. Glad I took extra-curriculum hand-to-hand combat at the camp. My attack sent him flying away. It was strange because back home I did not have this kind of strength to me. I looked at shocked man to see him trying to stand up. I looked around trying to find an exit, but the crowd made it really hard. I did not want to hurt them.

Stranger already stood up and was talking into the earpiece, calling for backup. I decided not to see what type of backup this was supposed to be. I jumped through the broken window and started running.

When I created some distance and hidden behind nearby car, I risked turning around to check what's my status. The stranger was now talking to group of funny dressed people. There was one dude dressed all red that couldn't stand still. Constantly jumping around like he was always on the run. Kinda like Hermes. Then, there was dude dressed all black and gray. There was this gloomy aura around him similar to the one Hades and his children emits, except this one was clearly mortal or distant legacy at best. There was also dude dressed in all green and another one that had green skin. There was also a woman wearing what looked like Greek armor. Well, not Greek per se, but it bore resemblance to what some hunters wore and what I've seen in amazons' headquarters. Last one was levitating man. He was hanging in the air. Not a mortal. Definitely not a mortal. I started crawling behind cars when an arrow landed in front of me.

A gloomy voice spoke behind me. "I wouldn't do that if I were you."

I turned to see that these dressed freaks found me. Not having other option, I quickly jumped on my feet and took battle stance. "Look guys. I had really tiring day, I just got there. I don't want any trouble. What says we walk different way and never see each other again?" I tried to stall. I didn't really stand chance against group of mortals or rather what looked like mortals but knowing my luck were some kind of super-humans. Just what world did Gods send me again?

"Sorry, but that is not an option. You clearly aren't human. You'll come with us so we can run some tests and see who or what are you." The green dude said with calmness in his voice. I looked around, trying to figure any way to escape. I noticed an opening between this man in red and woman in Greek. Without warning I jumped between them and tackled the woman that tried to stop me. I run straight toward the sea. Maybe I will lose them underwater. No one can best me at swimming.

I was already at the beach when something red zoomed next to me and for a moment I got surrounded by scarlet tornado. When it died out, I was bound with heavy cuffs with double blue rods connecting them and making moving my hands incredibly hard. Having unexpected change in weight I fell and tumbled a bit in sand. Before I stood up, I felt strong hand lifting me in the air. The levitating man turned out to be also quite strong. I tried to wriggle out of his grip, but it was strong like he was made of steel.

"Now be kind and stop constantly running away. We mean no harm, but you must come with us. There is something extraordinary about you and also you attacked and bested one of stronger Leaguers." The man holding me kinda reminded me of Jason with his actions. Like he was in power and he knew it but did not make a big deal out of it.

I was really getting tired with them. They clearly did not want to leave me alone. I closed my eyes and tried reaching mentally to the sea. I felt waves close to me. The water for brief moment resister, but finally a familiar tug in my gut told me that water submitted to my will. I poured all my past emotions into this channel. Rage of passed battle with giants, rage at Gaia for almost ruining everything, sadness after Annabeth left me to become goddess, happiness when seeing Nico become a god, the anger I felt toward Zeus for his arrogance and sadness about leaving my world and everything behind. It felt like all of this left me, going into water. I sensed huge wave gathering behind me. Some of my pursuers made a step back and looked scared, but the man holding me raised his hand and made a fist. "Drop the water now. There are innocent people nearby." He seems to have nerves of steel too. Instead of letting go, I made the wave fall on us and pull everyone under water. The renewing feeling of water touching my skin gave me enough strength to get out of the grip of surprised man and tear the handcuffs.

I quickly dashed, willing the currents to take me away, but I saw one of the pursuers, the one dressed in all red choking on the water. For a moment I wanted to leave him for the others to save, but they were more focused on getting me and he had no way of screaming for help. I turned the currents and sped past the rest, grabbing the drowning man and launching us both back to the beach. Once we landed, I forced all the water from his lungs, making sure to at the same time let air in so his lungs don't collapse. As I pulled the water out, he started coughing. I looked around to see the rest of them surrounding me, weapons ready. Clearly, they weren't going to give up so easily, but before they could react really do anything, I jumped back into the water and willed currents to take me away.

_end of flashback_

* * *

**Mount Justice**   
**July 24th, 11:34AM**

The team quickly gathered in the main hall when Batman called a meeting. Robin and KF came in arguing about who would win in battle between superman and Wonder Woman. Robin was great supporter of WW and kept giving valuable arguments. At the same time Wally kept arguing and stating that Supes' win by sheer fact he is Superman. Their discussion was cut short by glare from Batman and the fact that everyone was waiting for them.

"Today around 9:15AM Aquaman was attacked in his home town of Amnesty Bay. Unknown assailant walked into his favorite bar and got into verbal fight that got physical. When Aquaman got tossed through entire restaurant," at this point a video recording made with a smartphone appeared, showing the incident. "he called for backup. The total of seven leaguers arrived at scene. We tried to apprehend the assailant, but he tackled wonder woman and escaped toward the ocean, while at the same time demanding to be left alone. Superman and Flash managed to apprehend him temporarily, but he still dropped giant wave and pulled us all underwater. He started to escape, but when flash began to drown, he turned back and saved him, before running away for good." The feed from Batman's suit camera shown young boy, around 17 controlling water and pulling it out of Flash's lungs before he looked around and jumped into the sea. "We think this boy might be another Cadmus experiment. He displayed some level of water control. He kept mentioning new start and asked being left alone. He also displayed complete lack of knowledge regarding outside world and he wasn't aware about Justice league existence or any heroes." The video was now paused and zoomed on strange boy's face "I want you to find him and follow him silently. We must keep an eye on him, but most likely he will see League as a threat and might attack us or run away. Try not to engage if not necessary. Any questions?"

Superboy looked at the picture, trying to remember if he ever saw this boy in Cadmus, but nothing came to his head. Probably he was in another wing or another facility whatsoever. But there was also another problem. "Why exactly are we even following him? He asked to be left alone and if I understand correctly, he said he meant no harm until you guys assaulted him. It seems to me like he was just defending himself. If he wanted to defeat you, he would let Flash drown." Superboy got angrier with each word. It's not like this boy really did something wrong. If he was another Cadmus experiment that escaped, why hunt him?

"This boy is strong enough to tackle Wonder Woman and throw Aquaman across the room. Underwater, he is so fast that even Aquaman can't catch him. Whatever he is, he might pose a threat to public safety whether he is aware of it or not. If he is not aware of all his powers, he is even more dangerous. Does that satisfy you?"

"For now."

"Good. I need you all ready in 10 minutes. We managed to track him somewhere on long island near Delphi Strawberry field. Travel using bio-ship but stay in camo mode. Team dispatched." Batman said before walking away.


	2. Brave New World

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story will not be rewrite of YJ with Percy having one or two lines and contributing to fights. Some events will change, some fights that were lost will be won, some fights won will be lost. I will greatly change the plot on many different points. Also, Percy will not stay with JLA or The Team immediately nor join the Light ever.

**Undisclosed Location  
24th of July, 13:44**

In the dark chamber seven outlines of figures appeared on screens. To make sure nobody recognized them images of silhouettes were blurred. Before them stood a slender woman, about 5'6". Her face was hidden behind porcelain Cheshire cat mask. She wore dark-green kimono, but there were traces of some armor underneath.

"Sports master has failed us. We must make sure that this mission goes smoothly and without trouble." One of the figures spoke, but his voice was deformed by some tech. The video of boy punching Aquaman and then another with him drowning the whole league appeared.

"Today morning we detected an anomaly in small town named Amnesty bay. Not even an hour later close to the location someone took an entire Justice League and managed to stall them long enough to make an escape. We tracked him to Long Island. This boy is definitely strong and has some level of aquakinesis. There is also no mention of him in any database around the world."

"We want you to capture him and bring him to Cadmus B. He might be powerful asset. It's important that he doesn't fall into league's hand. Terminate if necessary and recover the body. Any additional information will be given on your way there."

Behind the mask Cheshire smiled. Finally, she had chance to show that she was better than her father.

* * *

**Long Island  
24th of July, 15:10**

Percy sat on the Half-Blood hill, or rather was half-blood hill in his world. Riptide was plunged into the tree all up to the hilt and used as peg to put the bag on. This was not Thalia's Pine, but rather some random tree somebody planted here. Percy used his jacket as impromptu blanket on which he sat on, overlooking the valley. Being honest, Percy had no idea what made him come to this place. It was just an instinct. While running from his pursuers, he willed the tides to take him somewhere safe. He did not have any place in particular, but subconsciously wanted to go home, the one place where he could be himself. But there was no such place here. This was a brave new world for him to explore.

He bought himself a small laptop at nearby store and "senior's guide to computer and internet". At first the cashier gave him a weird look, but he quickly explained that this is a gift for his grandma's b-day. What teenager would admit that he never used computer in the first place. Right now, he was learning the theory about using computers while enjoying the summer. Apparently, his dyslexia was left in the previous world. It was strange to him to be able to read English without any trouble. Everything was strange. Air in this world seemed overloaded with power. The longer he stayed here, the stronger he felt. The feeling was a bit similar to sitting on his father's throne, except the power recognized him this time and instead of threatening to vaporize him it accepted him. When he first touched the water, he felt more energized than usually, but now even outside of water he still was more energized.

He tried reading the book some more, but his ADHD was acting up. After closing the book and packing his things up, he went to retrieve Riptide and the bag, but just then he felt some other presence nearby. Thanks Hades blessing he could feel other living near him. No rising dead or shadow traveling, but life-sense and there was the fact that shadows seemed to be pulled to him, allowing him to hide better. He tensed, knowing that he is watched, but decided to play along. He took the bag and pulled riptide out of the tree. With demi-god reflex he turned around just in time to deflect three poisoned darts shot at him from unknown direction.

"Well, well, well... clever little boy. Didn't expect you deflect it. Guess I will have to do it the hard way." The female voice seemed to be coming from various different places at once. The life sense did not help, because she was constantly moving, leaving faint trail everywhere. Percy was tempted to close his eyes and try relying on other senses, but it was too dangerous to leave himself open like that.

Suddenly, a woman dressed in what Percy would describe as worst Halloween costume yet jumped at him holding two weird daggers. He managed to deflect one, but second cut his shoulder and drawn a bit of blood. Just as fast as she appeared, Cheshire disappeared in shadows created by surrounding trees. Percy felt the pain in his shoulder. The cut was shallow, but there was probably some poison on the knife. The pain was quickly replaced by the numbness. He wanted to quickly grab some ambrosia, but to do that he would need to drop his sword and use only good hand, leaving himself open for more attacks. Instead, he run toward the tree line hoping to lose her in the shadows. Before he got there, he felt something flying to him. Again, he dodged last moment as Kunai blade plunged itself into the tree. He managed to jump between the tree line. He kept running, but the numbness started to spread around his body. It wasn't as bad now. Apparently, his body was trying to fight off the poison.

"Impressive. This particular venom was taken from one of the most dangerous animals on the planet. It can paralyze elephant in seconds, and yet you still stand."

Percy stopped, having a problem catching a breath. Poison was taking its toll. Just then he had to block another strike from the mysterious attacker. He stopped both daggers with his blade just in time. He then proceeded with counter attack not giving her time to escape. She tried to block his strike, but Riptide not only did not stop, but shattered the Sai to pieces. Cheshire taken by surprise did not manage to dodge and only to minimize the casualties. Instead of getting hit in her head she received a nasty scar across her left shoulder. Now it was Percy's turn to be surprised. He was working practically without thinking. He half-expected riptide to pass through her, but instead it drawn blood. Cheshire took advantage of the momentary distraction and kicked the blade out of his hand at the same time doing back flip creating some distance. She tossed two more Kunai at him, but this time he caught one while dodging another. He quickly threw it back with more strength than he thought physically possible. Blade did not his Assassin, because she dodged last second, but it not just plunge itself into the three, but passed through leaving large hole.

"Hey! That wasn't nice. Didn't mother teach you not to destroy nature?" Cheshire mocked Percy, but internally she got scarred. If she did not dodge this blade, she would be the one with new hole in her.

"Didn't yours teach you not to disturb strangers in the forest?" Boy tried to buy himself some time until Riptide returned to his pocket. Sadly, with his rotten luck, it would probably take too long.

"Oh! I am disturbing you? Forgive me. Here, let me repay you!" She jumped at him drawing her two retractable blades. Last moment Percy got out of the way of her blades. Feeling familiar blade in his pocket, Percy pulled Riptide and uncapped it. The poison seemed to be completely out of his system by now.

"Ready for round two?"

"Do your best"

The fight carried on and on. Every time one of them got some advantage, it was quickly negated either by some dirty trick on Cheshire side or Percy just being himself. Unknown to her, he kept moving the fight closer and closer to water. He sensed a small stream of water nearby and slowly pushed toward it. Assassin found herself in defensive yet again. Percy tried to hold back on his strength not wanting to kill her. Even though riptide managed to mortally wound her, she was no monster. Maybe a legacy with strong enough connection to godly side of the family. She had no such limitations. The boy impressed her. She spent most of her life training to be an assassin and came out of nowhere being able to go toe to toe with her. At first, she was irritated with this. After all this was supposed to be her chance to prove better than her father, but now she saw it as ultimate test of combat prowess. If she took him down, there was no doubt that she would replace her father in the Light.

Finally, they arrived near the stream. It wasn't really that big. If someone really wanted, he would probably manage to jump over it. Maybe 8ft. wide, but that was enough for Percy. he faked trying to run, jumping over the water. Of course, Cheshire followed, forgetting about aquakinesis part. She was caught mid-air by tendrils made of water.

"Uff. Honestly, I didn't know this would work..." Percy was breathing hard. Adrenaline started to leave his body and only now he realized how long he has been fighting. It was probably around half past 2 already. He pulled a square of ambrosia and ate it, embracing the blissful taste of his mother cookies. Immediately, energy filled him again. The cut on his shoulder closed, leaving only a faint white scar to remind him of this battle. Cheshire tried to get out of the tendrils, but they only constricted her more. Percy willed the water to put her down and lock her hands and legs. The water then solidified into ice, taking away any chances she thought she had for escaping.

"What are you gonna do with me boy?" Under the mask she frantically tried to find some way of escaping.

"For starters, let's see who is behind this mask." He tried pulling down the mask, but he got shocked by safety mechanism. She laughed

"Oh, thank god. For a moment I thought you are actually intelligent."

"Forgive me for not having experience with masked assassins trying to get me. Monsters used to just explode when I cut them enough." He was getting irritated with the situation. Fighting for your life twice in span of few hours is enough. Being mocked by person you defeated was not fun. _Oh, the irony._ He willed the water to tear the mask off, revealing that the assassin was in fact almost his age. "Wow... Aren't you a bit too young to be professional murderer? I mean not to offend but you are maybe year older than me."

Cheshire got taken by surprise. This boy really was her age. She thought that maybe he just looks young. For someone her age, having this level of skill meant training practically since primary school or earlier. "What's in it for you? Maybe I just look young? Who cares? Just kill me and let me die with honor." She spat at his face. _Seriously, being defeated by youngster and then made fun for being young? What was this guy thinking?_

Percy only shook his head. "I am not gonna kill you. You are definitely not monster in my sense of the word. Probably I'm just gonna turn you to authorities and let them sort it out."

He was about to pull her up when a helicopter quickly approached their location. From it jumped a group of men dressed in all black garments with katanas and one man wearing modified football armor and hokey mask. "I told them you would fail, but we did not expect you to get captured so easily. The man drew a javelin from his pack and Percy instinctively grabbed riptide harder. "Now that the fun is over be kind... whatever you are supposed to be and come peacefully. It would be a shame to have you killed because of your stupidity."

Seeing enemy had numbers advantage, Percy turned around and jumped into the stream. Luckily, it was deep enough to allow him to fully submerge while the currents took him away.

* * *

**Somewhere near Poseidonis  
July 24th, 17:32**

This time, currents took Percy nearby Atlantis. He hoped to find his father's palace or at least ruins of it. He did not expect the whole thriving city. Percy finally realized that the guy he met in the morning might not have been so crazy with whole "King of Atlantis" after all. He decided to retreat and try finding more info back on the land, but something pulled him to the city. The familiar feeling of divine presence. It felt a bit like piece of him. He decided to investigate, willing the currents to take him to the city.

Percy had to hide between the rocks from time to time to avoid patrols of human with gills, but after what he had seen before, they weren't even close to top 20 weirdest things. Finally, he arrived to where more or less the feeling came from. Before him stood large, Greek styled palace with some weird additions. _At least something is familiar_.

That was exactly the moment his luck run out. He was so amazed by the view that he did not notice a patrol of guards coming from behind him. "You! Don't move! Who are you and what are you doing here!?" Percy turned to see two men in light armors. Their gear looked kinda Greek but with high-tech modifications. _Leo would love to tear this gear apart and make it better_. Instead of following orders, Percy dashed toward the palace. In his mind getting as close to the familiar feeling seemed like best idea. The guards started to follow him, but they were no match for the son of Poseidon. He outsped them, but he got reckless again and swam right into another set of guards. Seeing the other patrol chasing the boy, they immediately prepared for fight. Percy controlled the water around them and threw them back. They hit the gates leading to the palace with enough strength to make it open.

"Thanks for your kindness." Percy quickly swam through the gate ignoring their groaning.

He was now on auto drive, purely following the familiar feeling. The whole palace reminded him of his Father's place, but at the same time it lacked something. Finally, after taking yet another turn, he found himself in front of large painting showing some king probably. The man looked a bit like his father. Maybe he was descendant of Poseidon like Frank, or maybe he just looked similar. What killed the impression was the fact that this man had eyes in color of storm gray like Annabeth instead of usual sea-green. Percy felt great power coming from the painting, or rather from behind it. He tried looking for something to open secret passage, but there was just nothing. Hearing incoming guards, Percy placed his hand on the painting and just focused. The wall as well as whole wing started to shake. After about three seconds of this earthquake, Percy made one strong pulse and the wall fell apart, with stones closest to the source shattering into small pieces. When dust fell down, there painting was gone, revealing a tunnel. It wasn't what Percy expected. Instead of some dark and gloomy secret passage, he entered a high-tech room with lab-table, large and really advanced computer. What got Percy's attention was armor stand with purple and black armor and next to it Poseidon's Trident! That was what called him here. He quickly swam inside and was about to grab the weapon when something hit him in the back. Electricity coursed for a moment through his body, followed by a wave of pain. With last of his strength, he grabbed onto the trident and felt familiar strength fill him. His father words came back to him. " _Claim it your own and use it."_ Percy allowed the power of the trident to course through him. At first, it felt similar to holding Zeus' Master Bolt, but this time weapon did not resist him. Instead, trident seemed to encourage him. Percy turned around to see a man about ten years older than him, with bearing resemblance the king he saw at the painting.

"WHO ARE YOU?!" The man shouted at Percy. "You are ruining everything!"

Just then, palace guard finally got there. Immediately, they aimed their lances at Percy ready to shoot. Some looked a bit stunned seeing what seemed to be lair of Ocean-Master, the greatest enemy of their king right inside the palace, but that had to wait until after the intruder was deal with.

"Don't just stand there! Open fire and kill the intruder!" Man that was standing in the room with guard shouted with anger and a bit of fear in his voice.

The guard tried to follow the order, but before any of high energy bolts hit Percy, he willed the water to form a shield in front of him and then disarmed the guard also using water.

"Can someone explain to me what is going on here?" The new voice came into play. Everyone turned to see Aquaman swimming there with his wife and two of her students. He was followed by another set of guards.

"My lord! Be careful. We have intruder. He seems to be working with Ocean-Master!" One of the guards shouted. Aquaman tensed a bit, but it did not stop him in any way. He and the rest entered the area. Guards aimed at Percy, but he again disarmed them.

"It's you again! Who are you and why are you here?" Aquaman started to get irritated with the boy. First, he got beaten by him on land and now this stranger has invaded his own palace.

"If you must really know, my name is Percy Jackson." It might not have been the best decision to reveal anything to them, but Percy wanted to avoid fight. "As for why I am here, my father asked me to retrieve what rightfully belonged to him." At this statement, everyone tensed and prepared to fight. To Atlanteans, Percy just declared himself son of Ocean-Master.

"Why would Ocean-Master send you to attack us so recklessly. Surely not even you can take down whole army of Atlantis that is already gathering." Queen Mera wanted to believe that they had the advantageous position, but after seeing how easily the boy disarmed their guards, she was not so sure.

"Who is this Ocean-Master everyone keeps talking about? Definitely not my father, unless that's your name for Poseidon, then sure." _Great idea Percy. Reveal that you are Demigod to group of strangers that may or may not try to kill you_.

"Heresy! You can't be son of Poseidon. You are just some pretender." The guards seemed quite angry at his claim. He suddenly understood what this guy in orange must have felt when he laughed at the 'king of Atlantis' thing. Not good that's for sure.

"Ok. First of all, rude. Secondly, I am no pretender. I'm only doing a favor for my father. He wanted me to have his trident and not some mortals. Third and the last, can someone please explain to me what's your problem. Sorry for destroying the wall. I will pay for it. What is this place and where is my father's palace?"

Aquaman was about to say something when Orm shoot a lightning at Percy. "You really think we will fall for that? You are probably just a spy sent here by Ocean-master." He kept throwing lightnings at Percy, but he just aimed the trident and absorbed it all in.

"Listen. I don't want to fight you. Like I said before, I had it really hard past few days and now I can add 'attacked by assassin' to the list of why I'm so tired, but don't think I am any less dangerous. _Compared to other threats I have faced, you are nothing_ " At the last part his voice suddenly got lower and darker, sending chill down the spines of all Atlanteans. "What would convince you that I really am Son of Poseidon? You've seen my power over water and earthquakes, although the later I am still figuring out. That, " he pointed at the vanquished wall, "was the first time I tried using this power. Sorry for the damage by the way. I will try to pay you... somehow."

Queen Mera created a ball of hard water. "Anyone with basic magical training can control water. While geokinesis is rare gift and few are able to master it, that's no proof. Any other abilities you wish to share?" She tossed him the ball, keeping the magic up. To her surprise he looked at the ball and it disappeared in the water. Her spell was not broken. Her magic was just crushed by much stronger force. Instead of using counter spell like any trained magician, he willed the water to go away and it did, still being under her spell. She was surprised by ease with which it was done, but Mera did her best to hide it.

"Well, I can talk with marine and equine life." While Percy did not want to reveal anything, something told him that it was better to play open cards with them. He was also tired and would prefer to avoid conflict.

Queen Mera giggled, covering her mouth with back of her hand. "Look Orin. He can talk to fish just like you."

"I don't talk to fish. I command them." Aquaman growled, but also smiled.

Percy got a bit irritated. Sure, most fish and water creatures would gladly do what he asked, but they did it out of respect. If asked, he would help some hippocampi caught in net or fish stuck in narrow passage. He was even friends with some of the fish back home. There was also blackjack who would do anything for him (expect stopping calling him boss for some reason). Forcing them to do something against their will? It felt plain out wrong. "I do talk to fish. I do not command them, only ask politely. They have emotions and ordering them around is just..."

"Could you perhaps _politely ask_ some fish to come here?" One of the guards mocked Percy, but he just shrugged. Instead of answering, he tried reaching out to some marine life nearby. It so happened that he sensed a large group near the group of Atlanteans, so he tried sending the message. At that, all the present except Percy winced as they heard a loud voice in their head.

"What was that? Some kind of a psychic attack? Why was it so loud?" Guards were in small disarray, which Orin used to make his escape. He now only had to destroy the evidence.

"I believe I accidentally tried to mentally communicate with you. Apparently, you are a type of marine life by my standard, so technically you are under the control of my father. Sorry. None of the fish ever had problem with it."

"Still, not a proof of anything. One of my friends is a telepath." Aquaman was still unconvinced. There were just too many loose pieces.

"Look man. If I could, I would just ask my father for a sign or something, but this is supposed to be world without gods. They abandoned it centuries ago and can't come back. That's one of the reasons I am here."

Most Atlanteans were startled by the declaration. "Heretic! What do you know about our gods?!" Some of the guards started shouting at Percy, but he just laughed.

"Well, answering your question I know quite a lot about them since I met most of them personally and even if I did not, they managed to ruin my life in one way or another." This only infuriated them more, but Percy was not finished. "My father, ol' Drama Queen a.k.a Zeus, Queen Bitch Hera, Brainless meatloaf that is Ares, Aphrodite, Well, Apollo is kinda cool when he doesn't try to make you listen to his poetry... Artemis is scary one." He wanted to go on and on but seeing the rest dumbstruck at his speech he stopped there. "So yeah, I met them, fought some of them, saved others... You know, the usual."

Just when he finished speaking the whole building shook with explosion. Ceiling cracked and large and heavy parts started falling. Queen Mera and her students tried to stop it, but she was hit by some falling debris and lost consciousness. Others did not have enough experience and power to do it. The whole wing of the palace was falling apart and cliff on which it was standing broke from the rest. The guard quickly split up trying to get civilians out of this area while rest did their best to warn people on lower levels. Suddenly, everything stopped. Water solidified like when someone made a construct, but now it was around whole palace wing. Percy was holding the trident high and blades shined with blue light. Everything started to return to their places, with broken places being repaired with ice.

"That should give you enough time to repair most crucial parts and get everyone out before ice melts." That was the last thing Percy said before he fell unconscious.

* * *

**Watchtower  
24th of July, 21:56**

Percy woke up in some white room. Even before he opened eyes, he felt something metallic around his wrists. Once he finally battled the feeling of tiredness, he tried looking around, but overwhelming lights momentarily blinded him. When his sight returned, he noticed two heavy cuffs attached by chains to the bed. No matter how hard he pulled, they did not break. What also struck him was that he was no longer under water. There were no windows in the room, but he did not sense much water. Some was in the pipes and there was a huge tank about three levels below.

"I see you are awake. Now we talk." A dark, gloomy voice spoke from the shadows. Man dressed like a bat walked into the light. Seeing one of the people that attacked him when he first arrived, Percy tried getting out of the bindings, but with no success. The doors to the room opened and woman walked in. "I wouldn't bother. These chains were made to hold Ares, the god of war."

Seeing he was trapped, Percy stopped the struggle and settled on looking unhappy. "What do you people want. Look. I apologize for attacking your friend, but he started it."

"I think it's us that should ask for forgiveness. We misinterpreted the situation and paranoia of certain Bat got into our heads. You were confused and we should have helped instead of trying to detain you." The woman spoke calmly, but the man/bat tensed at her words. "We are curious as to why are you here and what is your issue with Aquaman?"

Percy pondered the words in his head. On one hand, this people tried to catch him few hours ago, but on the other hand he did attack his colleague twice already. "I don't really have issue with him. We just so happen to stumble onto one another often enough. If I didn't know any better, I would say that Fates still play with me. They promised to leave me alone though…"

While Batman had little idea what the boy was speaking about, Wonder Woman frowned. "Aquaman mentioned that you claim to be son of Poseidon and that gods abandoned this world long ago. Is that why you came here? To escape their wrath?"

"Not exactly. This was supposed to be my reward. To be free of them. No more fighting, no more wars, no more deaths."

The last two statements taken both leaguers by surprise. Boy in front of them looked young. He probably wasn't even an adult yet. The documents they found by him were obviously fake and he just confirmed he was from another world. But wars as in more than one. Deaths… This was not something someone so young should experience. Diana wanted to do something to reassure him, but she couldn't find the words.

"And why did you storm the Atlantean Palace?" Batman kept his voice emotionless, even if inside he was a bit shaken

"That was also an accident… Kinda. I got there by accidents. While in a forest, I was attacked by some… assassin and when I made my escape, I wished the currents to take me to safety. Guess I subconsciously thought of my father's palace as next safest place underwater."

The mention of assassin got the leaguers even more surprised. "This assassin. Who was he?"

"It was her, and I have no idea. Newsflash: I arrived into this world today morning. I don't exactly have any knowledge. I don't even know who you are supposed to be, but my gut is telling me to trust you." Percy shook the chains. "Not that I really have a choice." He tried to move into more comfortable position, but something was bothering him. Even with limited mobility imposed by the chains, he managed to pull some golden line from under him. "What is that supposed to be?"

Wonder Woman looked a bit ashamed. "That is my lasso of truth. We wanted to make sure you wouldn't lie to us."

"Cool. A bit uncomfortable to sit on, but cool."

"You are not angry. Many consider it invasion of privacy."

"Nah. Gods never really stop watching me. They made my life into reality show somewhere around my second quest. I gave up on scolding them somewhere around halfway through second giant war. Plus, Apollo can do exactly the same just by looking at you."

"You… scolded the gods? How is that you are still walking. Back when they still visited Themiscyra they would smite anyone who disrespected them."

"They tried, I beaten them."

The last sentence literally left Diana open-mouthed. She couldn't bring herself to utter a single sound.

"You defeated them? As in killed?"

"No! I just bested them. Some held grudge later, but no one really dared to defile Poseidon's will. And I saved their sorry ass more times than I can count, so that is that. Besides, Gods can't be truly killed."

"Well, for your information I did kill Ares." Wonder Woman was analyzing what the boy said. It didn't make a lot of sense. How could it be that there was whole different world where the gods resided. There was something not right.

"Yeah… Pretty sure you did not. I spoke to him right before arriving to this world. He is still bitter after I defeated him last time."

Diana took a step back. This boy was only seventeen or eighteen, and yet he defeated Ares already. He was also holding the lasso of truth, so he couldn't lie. "But…"

"Look. As much as I enjoy the talk, I don't like bragging about myself and I am starting to get hungry. Maybe instead you and Mr. Creeping-in-the-shadows over there could tell me about yourself. From what I've seen this world is really different from where I come from. Also…" Percy shook his hands causing chains to make a _cling_

"Well, you've been honest with us, so I think a proper introduction would be in order. My name is Diana of Themiscyra, but to world I am known as Wonder Woman. And the man in the shadows is Batman. We are part of Justice League of America, a group of superheroes protecting this world from danger."

"Nice. Anything you wish to share about you? I guess that 'Aquaman' already told you about my powers."

"Well, I am an Amazon, daughter of Zeus. I can… "

"Fly? Control Wind currents? Shoot lightning?" Percy interrupted her.

"Well, out of the three of it I can fly. I am also stronger than most. Quite surprising you managed to tackle me during our first meeting."

"Yeah. That is something I'm trying to figure out since I arrived here. The air… This whole world is full of energy. I feel it coursing through me. It only doubled after I grabbed my father's trident. What happened with it by the way?

"Secure in League's vault for safekeeping. No, you may NOT have it back" Batman was still trying to get a grip on this teenager. On one hand he was honest and said he means well, but his actions contradicted. First the fight in amnesty bay, then almost bringing down half the Poseidonis with his powers. This kid was a mystery, a loose cannon. Something that Bat could not just let go unsupervised.

Percy did not like the answer. He could understand their suspicion, but nonetheless it was irritating. "Now that I answered your questions, may I go? I have to settle a life for myself here. It's not like you can pay the bills just by being a demigod." _Well, Hazel in theory could, but not me._

"For now you will stay in our custody until we decide what to do with you.

"Yeah… That won't do. I will repeat. I cam to this world for a clear start. Sure I did not expect superheroes and 'Atlanteans', but it doesn't change the fact."

"You are a liability. A loose cannon. Ticking time bomb. With that much raw power that you illustrated, we can't allow you running around without supervision."

Diana frowned at Batman's statement. "He means he can't allow you. I disagree." She sent batman a glare and Percy could swear that Bat's eye twitched. "He is right though. You can't really just go around. You mentioned an assassin. I am pretty sure she did not want to go for a kill, but rather tried to abduct you so someone could wipe your mind and make you into weapon of mass destruction."

On the mention of mind wiping Percy clutched his fists. A flashback to his 'adventure' with Hera returned to him, but he ignored it and instead sent his patented wolf stare at batman and wonder woman. "I can manage."

Both heroes actually flinched. This was the stare that said 'no matter how bad anything is, I can be worse'. It was pretty scary especially coming from a teenager. Only it truly got to the leaguers that this kid was a war veteran, not some inexperience boy trying to play hero.

"Maybe you did manage to deal with last one, but they will keep coming. This world is full of powerful people. Some are fighting for the cause of good, but others purse their own goals. You can't defeat them all. No one can. That's why League was created in the first place." Batman did not want to let the kid go, but there was little they could do. They could charge him with assault on Aquaman and attack on Poseidonis, but that would put him in the spotlight.

"So my choice is either running for the rest of my life and looking over my shoulder, becoming slave of some evil maniac or playing hero? That's what you are trying to say?" Percy got really pissed. "Remind me to kick the next god I meet in place where Apollo doesn't shine hard enough to see him cry." He was really angry. Gods played him again. That was supposed to be his reward. His peace after wars. Instead, immediately after he got here he got pulled into some shady game between good and evil. _This three hags planned it. They deliberately sent me specifically to the place where I would catch attention of superhero. What are the chances that you stumble upon superhero just by walking into a bar?_

"Slow down, okay?" Diana couldn't decide whether to be scared or amused on the boy's threat. "There might be another option. We could put you under witness protection or send you to Atlantis if Aquaman agrees. We will try figuring something out and come back to you."

As the leaugers left, Percy tried to rest, but tons of thoughts swirled in his mind. Memories of friends he left, people he lost during wars, finally, his mother. She built a happy life for herself, but won't it crumble once she hears what happened to him? Then, his mind jumped to Annabeth. How she chose immortality over him. He tried to be angry, but no matter what, he couldn't bring himself to hating her. Her fatal flaw was hubris, deadly pride. She believed that her works would change the world. Athena played her. Percy's dream of growing old together in New Rome was gone. This world was supposed to give him chance for new beginning, but nothing really changed. Same three options as in his home world. Run and keep looking back, become evil or be a hero. Demigod life summed up. Some things never changes.

Percy Pulled riptide and uncapped it. Immediately, a familiar weight appeared in his hand. He looked at his reflection in the shining celestial bronze blade. That's not true. He changed. No longer the naive twelve years old that wanted so bad to save his mother. He grew, he changed and it was time to accept reality. If there is no hope for him, maybe at least he can give this hope to others.

* * *

The leaguers sat in meeting room. Before them played different feeds showing Percy's battles with league and Antlanteans .

"The boy definitely has skills and training." Hawkwoman finally broke the silence

"Agreed. Also, in terms of raw power he surpass all sorcerers of Atlantis to ever live. Singlehandedly stopping half of the palace from falling? That is just... Comparing it to Atlantean magic is like comparing horse to car." Aquaman chimed in on the discussion.

"So what are we gonna do with him? Right now he is just confused teenager that has nowhere to go." Superman was mildly concerned about the mentioned assassination attempt. "We ought to protect him, but instead we are locking him in medical ward below. If what he told us is true..."

"It is." Wonder Woman was getting tired with the inner politics of The Justice league. "There was no lie in his words. For once, he held to the Lasso of Truth, and facts checks out. Only thing is whether his information are complete or not. I feel there is some more to it than that." She took a deep breath to calm herself. "He claims that gods sent him there as a reward. He wished to go to the world where gods couldn't influence him. For him gods aren't concepts, but rather beings of flesh and blood, or ichor if you wish, that hold immense power. Like me, he is half-god"

"Blood test confirm that he is not fully human. His DNA structure is similar to that of Diana, but also mildly to that of Aquaman." Batman pressed some buttons and three strands of DNA appeared on screen. "I sent the team to apprehend him after the battle, but before they arrived he was already gone. They had a run in with Sportsmaster and an assassin known as Cheshire, confirming that Percy was in fact attacked in the forest. Someone put a bounty on his head."

"So what now? We put him in witness protection and move on?" Flash spoke up while at the same time eating one of his energy bars

"It's not that simple. We need to monitor him. He will always be a target, and once the word gets out about attack on Atlantis more people will want to get their hands on him. We must make sure that he is safe. Normal witness protection won't do." Batman's words put the league down. The boy was now their responsibility. Some felt guilty for pulling him into this mess. Especially Aquaman. It was his pride that initiated the whole conflict.

"Maybe ask him what he wants?" Green arrow offered.

"Right now he only wants peace, but given the current situation it won't be easy, if at all possible. He must have really angered the gods to receive such a cruel punishment. Promise of peace only to be sent right into another war." Wonder woman shook her head.

"That, is why I am an atheist. But back at the subject. I may have an idea. What if we made our own witness protection. Maybe he could leave with The Team. Some of the members lead a double life."

"No way. I don't trust him. It would be too much of a risk." Batman immediately shut the idea down.

Martian manhunter thought for a moment before speaking. "We must decide what is bigger risk: letting him in, or sending him off on his own."

"Let's bring him here and let him speak out for himself. Maybe he will offer us some more insight." Green lantern spoke from his seat. "Its only fair for him to have a voice in this."

"I disagree. He is in no position to negotiate." Batman tried to protest

Wonder Woman grabbed the table in respond to Batman's reaction. "He is not one of your villains or thugs to beat. He is a teenager lost in unfamiliar, strange world. A war veteran that hoped for peace. You have no right to try holding him against his will and if you try, I will stand by his side."

"So will I" Superman joined her.

"And I. If we just try locking him, we are no better than those who sent assassins." Canary joined the opposition.

"Fine. Bring him in, but don't take the chains off yet. In case I am right." Batman finally submitted.

After about five minutes Diana returned with Percy, but to Batman's distraught he did not wear the chains. The teen was massaging his wrists.

"Finally. Cool place. Not as great as Olimp, but comfy."

"We wanted to ask you something..." Superman started uncomfortable, not exactly sure how to form the question

"I thought it over." Percy's attitude suddenly changed from joking and easy-going to serious. "Out of the three option, I prefer to be a hero. Other two options suck just like back where I come from." This took the league by surprise.

"So now you want to what? Play hero?" Batman tried to send his worst glare at the teen, but boy just answered with his own, which cause Batman to flinch and back down. Other leaguers silently observed this exchange, impressed how easily Percy won the glare combat with big scary bat himself.

"I don't 'play hero'. My life taught me few things. One: Lone wolf act will get you nowhere. Two: Everyone deserve a second chance. Three: Always make sure the oath is binding." On the last one he chuckled. "Guess the last one I am still in the process of learning. Anyway, point is you are right. I won't survive out there alone. I will need your help. So maybe let's start over. I am Percy Jackson and I am demigod, son of Poseidon." He extended his hand toward Batman, but vigilante rejected it.

"I will be watching you closely. For now, let's discuss the details."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, that concludes the second chapter. How was it? I hope I portrayed the characters well. Batman is really hard to get. He is cold and distrustful toward anyone and he tents to transfer this onto others. Aquaman always was prideful in my opinion. And let's face it: Percy can't not be a hero. He will rush into action the first chance he gets. As I mentioned, Percy's arrival will mess many plans. For example Aquaman soon figure out that Orm is Ocean-Master, which will greatly hinder The Light.


	3. New Member

**Themyscira**  
**August 17th, 10:33**

Percy blocked the two attackers with his trident and reciprocated with wide slash. His mind was working on overdrive, analyzing the situation. He decided to move back to get some space and better utilize the range advantage his weapon gave him. He caught the sword one of the attackers used and locked it in his trident, then with quick snap of his wrist the blade was flying away. Who knew Luke's disarming technique worked so well with tridents once adapted. One swift move later first attacker was on the ground. The other, realizing the disadvantage started to play dirty. Slashing the sword on sandy ground and sending dirt on Percy the assailant hoped to distract him and get his guard down, but Percy simply spinned, using the other end of his trident to make his opponent loose balance. After that a quick kick was enough to send attacker flying. Sword fell of her hand and Percy pointed his weapon at her throat.

"Yield?"

"Fine. You win this time. But I want a rematch some day." Donna frowned, but deep down she was impressed. This mysterious demigod was able to best every Amazon in single combat, and now he proceeded on with kicking their asses in groups. She and Artemis were supposed to be best of the best among their ranks, but he didn't even break a sweat while knocking them down.

"Sure you will. Just not in this century." Percy extended his hand and she took it.

Without turning back he made a jab with blunt part of his trident and Artemis was sent back. "Not cool. I did not expect such dishonorable behavior from you." Percy laughed as the other Amazon tried to stand up, but fell back down because of pain.

"Stupid demigod reflex. If you weren't a demigod, I would have defeated you already." After that she added a string of colorful curses in ancient Greek, to which Percy only smiled. He then turned to Diana, who was observing the whole event.

"So?"

"I'm impressed. You really are greatest swordsman on two earths. But let's see how you do against someone that can match you in power." Wonder Woman smiled as she jumped into the arena, drawing her sword.

Percy only smiled and readied his trident. "Bring it on Princess."

Diana dashed at Percy, but the last moment she sidestepped left and tried making a jab, but instead she hit the shaft of his trident as Percy blocked her attack. Then, she proceeded with three more slashed and few jabs, but Percy blocked or dodged all. While she was trying her best to hit him, he went on defensive looking for some opportunity. When Diana made overhead slash, he intercepted it with his trident and locked the blade on the ground. He then used his weapon like a jumping pole to boost himself and launch a kick at her head. To dodge, Wonder Woman had to let go of her sword, which she did. Now Percy stood between her and the weapon. He smiled and kicked the blade away, making it unlikely she will get it before the fights end. She took battle stance and made welcoming gesture. Percy launched himself using the trident like a bo staff. He swiped high, making Diana duck, but at the same time, he opened himself for her low kick. She made him loose balance enough to grasp his weapon and try throwing it away to even the ground. To her dismay, Percy held the trident firmly and used it as a leverage, while falling on his back and kicking her back. He then jumped on his feet and pointed his trident at her neck, but before he could say anything she swiped again, sending him onto the floor again. Then, she pulled a small knife and pressed it to throat, but as soon as she did she felt something pointy near her heart.

"I would call it a draw." Percy smiled at Diana. She frowned at first, but also smiled and helped him stand up.

"I don't know how, but you are able to match me in combat every time. Well done. Although I am not sure my mother will be happy with how today's training session turned out. Amazons' pride is already down now that this, and I quote, 'insolent male' came to Themyscira and started wiping the arena with each of them. Hearing that you matched me in fair battle will be like a slap on the face. I have no knowledge on how much longer they will tolerate you, before ganging onto you fifty versus one." Wonder Woman laughed before going to pick his sword. Percy chased after her.

"So? When I will be able to join the league? Don't get me wrong. It's nice here and I like training, but it feels too much like a prison here. No offence to other Amazons, but they act too much like... Like they want to put me in orange jumpsuit and make me move boxes around."

"Patient. Your skills are really impressive and you are quick study when regarding the customs of this world, but some members would prefer to have you stay here permanently. We can't allow that, but there is still much to be done before you can be brought into the spotlight." At Diana's words Percy frowned. Sure, spending few weeks training was good break, but on Themyscira he had no friends and no real way of making any. He was bound to specific timetable, he couldn't explore the island or even leave his room without supervision. Only thing to do was either train or study. He already had pretty good grasp on the world he found himself in and the more he read, the more he wanted to kick gods where Apollo doesn't shine using Thalia's boots with reinforced steel cap. He also learned to use his father's trident as his main weapon. Turns out that he has natural skill with it.

"My father used to say that 'Sea cannot be contained and it is dangerous to try.' I agreed to be a hero not to be locked in remote island somewhere in the Mediterranean sea." The lack of fun was killing him. At some point Percy considered writing a book about his life, but abandoned it after first chapter. There was no point and writing was boring. His ADHD kept acting up. He needed some action.

"Well, there is one more option. Lately, Batman formed a team for special cases. Robin, Aqualad, Kid Flash, Miss Martian, Superboy and Green Arrow's new protege Artemis. I could get you a place there. This would be a chance for you to prove yourself and earn a place in the League." Wonder Woman wasn't convinced the team would be good place for Percy, but it was only alternative to being confined to Themyscira.

"So basically I would become what? A glorified errand boy for big scary bat?!" Percy got really pissed. The earth around him began to slightly shake. "Nunu. I'm done with being a servant, a tool, anything but equal. Right now this Batman is acting like a god. And to remind you, I'm done with gods."

"I know Percy, but League will be accepting new members in late December. You think you could at least try working in the Team until then? It would be a chance for you to get field experience."

"Or I could just jump into the ocean and become hero all by myself. Like I said. Nothing but an equal." Percy raged at the Amazon and tremor increased.

"Perseus Jackson! Calm down now and try to think for a moment. The league was created to enforce and embrace certain values. One of them is teamwork. Also, aren't you acting like the gods by claiming that this team is below you?" Diana pulled one last card out of her sleeve turning Percy's words against him. Hearing the last part he calmed, but still looked unhappy.

"Fine. You win, but I will join on my rules."

"Great. I will talk things through with Batman and some others. You can start packing." Diana was happy that she finally got Percy to agree and he was happy that he was leaving this paradise prison. For a moment he thought he would miss Donna. She was truly the only one that actually talked to him and treated him as an equal rather than intruder.

* * *

**Mount Justice**  
**August 18th, 20:21**

_Recognized: Wonder Woman, 0-3  
Recognized: Perseus Jackson B0-8_

The team eagerly awaited the arrival of mysterious new member. After what they witnessed three weeks ago, it was really something special.

_Flashback_

After arriving at the last known location of a suspect, team found themselves on hill in the forest. The place looked almost peaceful if not for large hole in the tree. Robin pressed some button on his glove and scanned the area. There were some particles of unknown metal in the hole, but not enough to conduct full analyze.

"He was here, but I think we missed him. Now maybe let's get some snack. I am hungry. You want to go get some pizza together sunshine?" Kid flash directed the last one to M'gann.

"Focus. He may be gone, but there might still be some clues about where he went." Aqualad started to look around.

"Ugh, Guys! I think I found something." Superboy was holding a small dart with green substance at the end. "I think he wasn't alone here."

Robin run an analysis on the poison, but he already knew what to expect from the shape of the dart. "League of Shadows. This poison is strong enough to take down Bane."

"There is also a trail of broken branches leading deeper inside the forest." Miss M. pointed at one of the trees.

The Team followed the trail, but their pace was rather slow because Robin kept insisting on stopping by to analyze random holes in the trees. Or at least random to Wally, because it turned out that they were made quite recently by some projectile weapon, most likely kunai. Finally, the team arrived to small glade. There, the grass was red in some places. Yet another quick analysis revealed that the blood belonged to an assassin known as Cheshire, associated with the League of Shadows. Wally found some metallic shards that Robin took for further study, but the evidence suggested that fight carried on outside the glade. As they were about to leave, Superboy found a tree with large hole in it.

"Whoever attacked this tree was angry." He pointed at the look-through space in the middle and then at the tree behind the first one.

"Or really strong. Team! Stay on alert. We don't know if whoever battled here left or what is his endgame." Aqualad ordered the team and took the lead, following the trail into the woods. The longer they followed, the more visible destruction became. In retrospection it looked like they both were holding back at first, but now the trees were much more devastated by prolonged fight. Finally, they got near some stream.

There, the trail suddenly turned cold.

"He must have traveled through water. Didn't Aquaman mention that he swims fast. He must have used it to escape Cheshire." M'gann tried to lift up the atmosphere. "There aren't any blood traces."

"You are right. It is possible, but maybe she managed to subdue him. We must report back to the cave. This is getting fishy."

 _End_ _flashback_

Now looking back some of the Team members are happy that they did not meet him back there. Would the fight break out, they would loose painfully. Aqualad had chance to witness the power this boy held when he went to visit Atlantis. He was called back after investigation revealed that Prince Orm was in fact the Ocean-Master, now wanted fugitive all across the Atlantis.

Batman stood there with his hands crossed. "I see someone managed to finally convince the boy to accept the _invitation_ " He said the last words with sarcasm.

"I did not agree to anything yet. I said I will come and see, but don't expect me to stay. I will not be errand boy anymore. Got that?"

"Doesn't he kinda remind you of Speedy?" Wally leaned over to Robin and whispered to him. Percy looked their way and they both knew immediately that he heard them. Robin stepped toward.

"Hi. Glad to finally meet the person that gave bat a headache of the decade. How did you manage to piss him off so much?"

"Let's say that the sea does not like to be contained." Percy gave Rob and the rest his mischievous smile. "I will tell you later. right now I would really want to get my bags to my room and settle in."

"Hello Megan! Of course. Follow me. Right this way." Miss M. started flying into one of the corridors. Percy shrugged. He picked his bags and followed in.

Once the two were gone Batman turned to Diana. "You sure this is the best way?"

"This teen needs to spend some time with other people. The only thing we can do is at least give him space to do so or he will end up running away on his own. Last thing we need is another 'Speedy' to keep tabs on."

"I hope you are right."

"How is the work on the suit for him going by the way?" Diana wanted to already go, but last moment remembered about what gear Percy designed.

"I made some improvements for the design, but otherwise it will be ready for tomorrow." Batman gave one last look on the cave before familiar sound of zeta tube was heard.

* * *

After Megan showed Percy his new room he started settling in, but after about fifteen minutes someone knocked the doors and before demigod had a chance to answer they bursted open and Kid Flash barged in.

"We are going to have a bonfire at the beach. You coming or what?"

At first, Percy wanted to answer 'or what' for the sheer fun of irritating this dude, but he decided to drop it. After all he came here to have some fun and finally meet other people. "Fine. Let's go."

The two arrived at the said beach to meet everyone else already settled. It was already dark, but summer nights are warm and fire gave enough light to let everyone see clearly.

"Nice of you to join us Perseus." Aqualad greeted Percy, but he winced at the sound of his full name.

"It's just Percy. When someone calls me Perseus they usually want to kill me. Pleasure is all mine. Man! After spending three weeks on Themyscira I would give anything for some quality fun time. So? What's the plan?"

The team was surprised by his open nature. After description they received from Leaguers they expected angsty teenager with anger management issues. Second superboy not another KF.

"Well, usually we toast marshmallows and tell stories..." Megan began.

"Cool. Do you also sing?" Percy got excited. This was finally a chance for him to have some normal life.

"No. No one here really knows how to sing." Superboy put him down.

"So what? The fun is IN the fact that no one can. I will start and you join me. What says?"

The team looked at one another unsure what to do. Seeing their hesitation, Percy started singing. As soon as he first started, all their eyes turned to him. His voice was crystal clear and he never missed a tone. After one song he carried on with another and another while they all listened, holding their breathes so they don't accidentally interrupt him. Finally, after third song Percy stopped and took his glass of lemonade. The shock he left them slowly started to wear off.

"That... that was... Where did you learn to sing like that?" Artemis finally managed to speak up.

"Hm?" Percy got confused. "Nowhere. I don't know how to sing." After seeing their open mouths he facepalmed. "Of course. Apollo's blessing. Guess I will have to thank him for that... after I kick him."

"Yeah right. And real version? You can't expect us to believe that some old god blessed you and suddenly you can sing. It takes years of practice to learn that." Wally shook his head.

"You guys know who I am right?" Seeing their puzzled looks Percy just gave his signature mischievous grin. "Oh. That explains much. Let me introduce myself. I am Percy Jackson, son of Poseidon."

While most of them were staring at Percy not knowing how to answer, KF started laughing uncontrollably "Yeah right! And I am a kryptonian. Seriously. Who do you take us for? We are supposed to suddenly believe that you are fish Jesus or something?"

Percy only chuckled and walked toward the ocean. Water crept to him and suddenly shot up into his grasp, forming the Trident that solidified and turned golden. Later, sea rose behind him into giant wave with hole in the middle looking like a winged horse. A glowing trident appeared over his head. "Does this serves as enough proof?" Percy looked at the rest of the team grinning widely. Robin and superboy were starring with awe, Artemis took a step back and Miss M. opened her mouth to say something, but closed it not finding any words. Aqualad quickly rose from his seat and knelt before Percy.

"My lord. I had no idea. Forgive me for..."

"Whoa! Slow down. I did it just for the fun of seeing your faces. No need to jump on one knee."

Wally smiled. "So you admit this was just a joke? HA! I knew I am right. There are no gods and magic doesn't exist. Science wins again"

"No. I am son of Poseidon, just that I don't want anyone to kneel in front of me because of that. It's enough that fish mistake me for my father in this world." He gave out another chuckle.

"Not buying it. You are just an alien. Or half alien. Or Atlantean. Or atlantean-alien hybrid." Kid Flash frowned.

"On mars we place great value and trust in our Priests."

Hearing that, Wally's attitude made one eighty change. "Of course. Magic is totally cool. I love magic. Maybe we could go somewhere private to compare notes?" This earned disapproving glare from Artemis and chuckle from Percy.

Rest of the evening was spent on telling stories from personal life. At first Percy was reclutant to share, not exactly comfortable with telling them about wars, but he finally settled on telling them about some 'accidents' regarding his school life. The tale about how he dropped the whole class to the shark pool earned applause from Wally.

* * *

The next day evening Superboy and Kaldur were engage in sparring practice. Megan and Artemis watch and talk about which of their teammates the other should date. Percy was standing in the back, enjoying the show. Finally, SB got the advantage and threw Aqualad, using the trick Canary showed him.

"Good battle. I am curious though. Who would win if you did not hold back on your powers." Percy knew that both of them kept to just practicing hand-to-hand combat, not using any powers. It was different at CHB, where most of the times demigods were taught to utilize all and every advantage they had.

"The point is to be able to fight without powers. There might be time when you won't be able to use them and then what?" Kaldur gave Percy the same peptalk Canary gave SB some time back.

"Well, then I will have to figure something out. I've done it before."

"Or you can train with us. Come on. Show us some of this 'demigod moves' of yours." Wally mocked Percy

"You're on." Was the only response. Wally wanted to back off, but Megan was standing right next to him. He just gulped and jumped onto the platform.

Percy and KF took battle stance and waited for each other. Finally, Wally attacked with right hook. Percy just ducked and reciprocated with uppercut. Wally was sent flying and landed on the ground. Big red _DEFEATED_ appeared over his head. Percy turned to the rest. Wally gritted his teeth. This guy was getting on his nerves. First he comes here talking magic mumbo-jumbo and now he knocks him down in one punch? That's it. He zoomed with super speed aiming another strike at Percy's head, but to his surprise boy turned around and simply caught his fist. Percy gave him a wide grin before throwing him over his shoulder and giving him a hard landing.

"Wow. You are acting like Artemis. She is also a sore looser." Realizing that the blonde in the room started to give him the glare, he quickly added. "I meant the Amazon I used to train with. She never accepted defeat either. Sorry if I went too hard on you this time. When my reflexes kick in I have harder time controlling my strength."

"And how strong exactly are you?" Superboy chimed in.

"Well, according to what I managed to figure out, I can stand toe to toe with Wonder Woman. It would make sense since we are both children of big three." Seeing their puzzled faces he clarified "Zeus, Poseidon and Hades. The three sons of Kronos and Rhea. There is also that this whole world is overcharged with magic. Since arriving here I got stronger, my powers increased in magnitude and I got some degree of invulnerability back. When I once sparred with Diana head-on with all tricks allowed we ended up recreating World War 1 battlefield. I had to learn to control this strength not to accidentally kill any mortals."

"You can go toe to toe with Wonder Woman? Sorry but I have hard times believing that. She is like... Superman level strong." Superboy was unconvinced. This teen came out of nowhere claiming to be best of the best.

"Wanna do hand-wrestling?" Percy offered.

"You're on." Superboy smiled and walked to the table.

He and Percy locked the grab. Kaldur gave a mark and they began. At first they were equal, but slowly and surely Percy advanced. Soon, superboy found himself almost defeated. In last desperate effort he put his whole strength in the push, but Percy returned with even more strength. Suddenly, before either could win, the table broke into pieces.

"WHoa! That... was some show." Kaldur constantly shifted a look from one boy to the other.

"Good play. For a moment you almost got me at the end." Percy extended his hand to congratulate superboy. Everyone expected Connor to rage at Percy, but to their surprise he took it.

"You aren't that bad."

Just then Red tornado came into the room. Wally immediately zoomed to him and started pestering for a quest.

"Missions assignments are the Batman responsibility"

"He is playing Dynamic Duo with the Robin back in Gotham, but you are heading somewhere. So? you got a date or a mission?" Wally did not want to give up

"We can be of help if you need us." Kaldur added.

Red turned around and hologram of an old man appeared. "this is Kent Nelson. A friend. He is one hundred and six years old."

"He doesn't look a day over eighty" Percy joked, earning a disproving glare from Kaldur.

"He has been missing for twenty three days. Kent was a member of Justice Society. A precursor of your mentors Justice League.

"Of course! Nelson was earth's sorcerer supreme. He was doctor fate." Kaldur enlightened the rest. Hearing that, Wally snorted. He wanted to say something, but Percy sent him a glare that silenced him. _This guy can joke one moment and then turn dead serious. What is his problem?_

"Kent may simply be on one of his... walkabouts, but he the caretaker to the helmet of fate, the source of Doctor's mystic might. And it is unwise to leave such power unguarded."

"He is like the great sorcerer priests and priestesses of Mars. I would be honored to help find him."

Hearing Megan volunteer, Wally immediately raised his hand. "ME TOO! So honored I can barely stand it. Magic... rocks." In the back Artemis rolled her eyes.

Red Tornado pulled some weird metal thingy. "Take this. It is a key to the Tower of Fate."

Meanwhile, Wally ignored anything and tried to flirt with Megan, but she only smiled kindly in response.

"One more question." Percy came to Tornado. "Did Batman maybe sent something for me?"

"Yes. The outfit you designed is already in your room." Red simply pointed toward the living quarters before leaving the team to prepare.

His new suit was made of something batman called Titanium-carbon alloy fiber, which Percy shortened to Tiber Metal. His shoulders, elbows and some parts of his chest were protected by bronze reinforcement. The gloves contained supply of water that he could control, similarly to Aqualad's backpack. On his legs he had fins. An addition to his own design made by Batman. Apparently the guy did have some sense of humor. On his chest there was large golden trident that stood out from overall deep blue color scheme. Same image was emblazoned on each shoulder guard. His face was covered with domino mask that was equipped with some standard gadgets like binoculars or enhanced reality.

* * *

**Salem**  
**August 19th, 20:22**

The Team arrived at coordinates Red Tornado provided, only to find an empty plot. Wally started to run around trying to find anything, but Percy just stood there smiling. To demigod's disappointment they were all in civilian clothes not to attract attention.

"Maybe the new guy should help us look." Wally turned to Percy.

"I don't need to. I am looking at it. Hand me the key Kaldur."

Curious to see what Percy had in mind, Aqualad handed the requested object to him. Percy simply took few steps toward and inserted the key into invisible keyhole and twisted it. Large, four-sided tower appeared in front of the Team.

"I have experience with camouflage magic. This spell was really strong, but I think it didn't work on me for some reason." Percy pushed the door and whole team entered into the darkness of the tower. Once everyone was inside, the doors disappeared.

"eh... where did the doors go?" Suberboy looked around. The whole interior was kept in rather medieval style, with torches being the only source of light.

An image of Kent Nelson formed in front of Percy. "Welcome Demigod. You've entered the tower using the key, but the tower does not recognize your companions. State your purpose and intent."

Wally wanted to jump in and impress Megan, but Percy stopped him. "We are here to see Kent Nelson. His friend Red Tornado is worried about him and asked us to come."

The image smiled, before fading. The wall in front of them opened to reveal labyrinth of staircases.

"Let me do the talking here. I have experience with magic."

"yeah? Where from? Oh! Let me guess... Another god blessed you?" Wally snapped at him. This boy kept getting on his nerves and taking away chances to impress Megan.

"Nope." Percy answered Popping the 'p'. "I learned some basics from my friend. I also encountered fair share of sorceresses in my life, so stay put. I feel we might encounter some traps."

"Yeah right... I could have guessed that too. Any magical treasure is guarded. Just like your beautiful eyes Meg." Wally spoke the last turning to Miss M standing next to him.

That did it for Artemis. She pushed wally all the way to the wall. "Enough! Your little impress Megan at all cost is potentially endangering the whole team. What would happen if Percy wasn't there huh? If you triggered some trap while showing off. You don't even believe in magic so stop. this. charade!" She was honestly tired. This guy needed to learn that M wasn't interested in him and stop embarrassing himself and the martian in the process.

In the back, Megan looked confused. "Wally? You don't believe?"

KF looked first at Artemis, then at miss M. Finally, he broke. "Fine! Fine. I admit. I lied about believing in magic. But magic is the real lie. A major low."

"Wally. I studied for a year at the conservatory of sorcery in Atlantis. The mystic arts created the skin icons that power my water bearers."

"Dude. Have you ever heard of bio-electricity? Hey in primitive cultures FIRE was once considered magical too. They are all just a bunch of tricks."

"You are pretty close-minded for a guy breaking sound barrier in his sneakers." Artemis countered.

"That's science. I recreated Flash's laboratory experiment and here I am." He raised his hand high. "Everything can be explained by science."

"Enough people. We must move. You can sort your problems back in the cave." Percy silenced everyone just as Artemis opened her mouth to argue with Wally.

They walked onto the staircase when a cane floated toward them.

"what is this?" Artemis extended her hand to grab it, but then wally run toward it and also wanted to grab it.

"Probably his magic want. " He said while placing his hand on the cane the same moment Artemis did. When their hands touched floating item, golden light enveloped them and they rose in the air.

"I can't let go!"

"Me neither!" Artemis wanted to add something, but they disappeared in flash of light. Percy just shook his head.

"Am I the only one thinking they will end up together?" He joked before carrying on.

"Aren't you worried about them?" Kaldur caught up with Percy.

"Nah. There is no point. This looked like the cane Kent Nelson used on the picture Tornado showed us." Probably it was supposed to guide us to him." Best thing now is to try find him the other way." Just then they walked onto the platform with one doors on it. "Told you." Percy opened them and walked through, followed by the rest of the team.

They walked out on another platform, greeted by Kent Nelson (now holding his cane), Artemis and Wally. Percy walked toward to greet the magician, but he and everyone else were knocked back by the lighting striking between them. Percy, Wally and Kent were thrown toward the big bell in the middle while the rest were pushed away. Nelson stood up and hit the bell with his cane, making it light up. He then walked inside, followed by Wally and Percy. Klarion raged and also jumped into it.

They all appeared on the top of the tower, with golden helmet levitating above them. It's design reminded Percy of some gladiator helmets he saw in museum. This type was worn by captured Greek warriors fighting in the coliseum. He had no idea where this knowledge came to him, but it just did. Kent tried to grab the helmet, but before Percy or Wally could react, he was blew back by a red light.

"Well, well, well! If it isn't demigod son of Poseidon. My friend told me about you." Klarion said to Percy, but doing so he focused all his attention on him and did not realize that Kent summoned a protective spell around him, the helmet and Wally. Percy was standing too far away and did not get covered by the shield. Instead, he quickly equipped his gloves.

"Your... friend?" Percy was surprised. Not many people were supposed to know his true identity. There was something about the way this boy referred to him that made him think he knows him well.

Klarion shot another beam of red energy at Percy, but demigod swiftly dodged it. "Yes. You made quite a commotion. First mortal to travel through Tartarus and escape alive... and sane." Hearing this Percy froze for a moment and that gave Klarion a chance to fire at him. Percy was sent back flying from the tower.

"NOOO!" Wally shouted. Kent Nelson just died in front of him and now he saw Percy falling down from the tower. Klarion started furiously firing flaming projectiles at the shield. Hearing M'gann plea for help and seeing his shield fall apart Wally grabbed the helmet and put it on, ignoring warning given to him by the Witch Boy.

While Wally let the inner monologue with Kent, himself and Nabu was battling Klarion, Percy slowly rose back onto the rooftop. He was about to hit ground when in last desperate attempt he created a hurricane around himself to slow the fall a bit. It did stop him mid-air, but learning how to navigate this thing took him few moments. Finally, after he touched the solid ground and pulled the water back into storage compartments in his gloves he saw Witch Boy battling doctor Fate. Doc seemed to be winning, but there was no trace of KF. Suddenly, Klarion disappeared into mist and reappeared behind Fate. From that on, the battle seemed to be in favor of the Lord of Chaos. Percy wanted to intervene, but he had no idea how. Finally, Doctor Fate was thrown away and moaned from pain. Just then it hit him. The voice belonged to Wally. The speedster became new vessel.

Percy extended his hand and out of nowhere (not from his gauntlet) water formed into a trident. He then jumped between laying doctor fate and Klarion and plunged the weapon into ground. Immediately, salt water started coming from the hole. Percy used the newfound supply to create a barrier between the fighting sides. Witch Boy started shooting red rays onto the shield, but whenever the shield broke in some place, more water filled the crack and reinforced it. Fate managed to stand up.

"Attack the cat. It's his anchor allowing him to stay in this world." Fate calmly spoke to Percy before rising above the shield and shooting beam of golden light in general direction of Klarion. Lord of Chaos created shield in front of him, but attack was not directed at him, but rather at the animal next to him. Said familiar was not protected and got tossed away.

"Attacking a defenseless animal? it's low even for a lord of Order" Klarion screeched, but Fate only responded with another attack directed at him. Witch Boy jumped into the portal and appeared next to his cat. "Killjoy. Come on Teekl. We are out of here."

Lord of Chaos changed into shadowy tendrils and disappeared. Wally levitated in the air for a moment, but he finally took of the helmet and landed. Percy decided to stand back and not say anything as the boy walked to Kent's body and put a watch in his grip.

* * *

**Happy Harbor**  
**August 20th, 11:58**

Wonder Woman was dressed in casual clothes and wearing glasses. She sat in the cafe, waiting for someone. Finally, right when bell on the town hall signaled mid-day a casually dressed teenager, also wearing glasses of similar design joined her.

"So Percy? How was your first mission with the Team?" Diana asked. Waitress came to collect their orders. Percy asked for two frozen coffees and two slices of Apple Pie. Wonder Woman did not question his choice.

"Megan told me that their Pie is apparently to die for. As for the team... Guess they are okay. Kinda remind me of my friends. Wally is everywhere and flirting with each girl he meets. Megan is shy and still new to modern world. Kaldur is responsible and devoted. He tries to act as an adult even if he is only sixteen. There is also robin, who... well the boy is a mystery. And artemis reminds me of..." Percy's voice broke for a moment. "Annabeth. It's not just the blonde hair and stormy eyes, but also her attitude. She won't bend or accept shit from anyone. She is proud of her achievements, but there is something more. She is so determined to prove something, but I can't figure out what."

Diana listened calmly. "And superboy?"

"He is okay. Slight anger management issues, but we get along pretty well."

"I am happy that you found some friends in there. And what with the mission? I heard what happened." Percy tensed, silently praying that Diana doesn't ask about the Pit. He closed this chapter and locked the memories deep down. Sometimes he still had nightmares, but it wasn't so bad anymore. "You stood up against Klarion the Witch Boy and saved Doctor Fate. League is impressed. Good job."

"yeah... Thanks." Just then two plates of pie were placed in front of them. Young waitress sent Percy a smile, but he was already focused on his food. Diana chuckled internally. They talked a bit more about various things. Percy told her how stunned the team was when he summoned the trident. Secretly, he was practicing the whole act at the beach of Themyscira when he had nothing better to do.

"There is one more thing. Aquaman wanted to invite you to visit Atlantis. He wanted to thank you for revealing his half-brother's schemes. What should I tell him?"

Percy pondered the question for a moment. "Tell him that I will be glad to come and properly meet him. We really started on a wrong foot." Happy to hear that, Diana finished her coffee and stood up.

"See you soon then" She said before walking away. Percy sighted and also left, leaving a large tip. If you have almost infinite money for small expenses, why not act generous?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Themyscira is never shown in the series so I based it on other DC animated media and a bit on comics. Both Amazon!Artemis and Donna are actual DC characters. Like I said, not a fan of OC.


	4. Where the Heart is?

**Atlantis**

**August 25th, 13:34**

Percy was slowly swimming through the corridors of Royal Palace in Poseidonis. He was being escorted by three guards, but he suspected they were more of honorary guard than to actually keep him in check. If he really wanted to do something, they wouldn't really be able to stop him. He was now wearing his superhero outfit minus the domino mask. He was doing it out of respect, rather than to hide his identity or be ready for battle. What gave guard some reassurance was the fact that he wasn't carrying any weapons. Guess they did not know the power that Trident held.

While swimming, they passed near construction works. The wing that got unfortunately destroyed by Ocean Master trying to cover his tracks. Irony was in the fact that is he didn't use explosives on the base of palace but on the wing or even the room itself, every evidence and possibly witnesses would be eviscerated. By being too careful Orm failed in covering his tracks. Over the course of investigation it became clear that Percy was not responsible for the structural damage of the underwater cliff and fall was caused by high-tech sonic charges. Aquaman was devastated by the betrayal, but finally he got over it and now devoted all free resources as well as time on tracking the traitor. Percy volunteered to help, but Orin was still bitter over the boy and his actions. That is exactly why Wonder Woman perceived the invitation as such important. A chance to finally bury the hatchet and start anew.

Finally, they entered a large throne room, similar to the one Poseidon had back in his palace before it was destroyed by Oceanus' army. The place was really whelming. Aquaman was sitting on his throne towering over the whole place. Next to him, on slightly lower chair sat a woman that Percy guessed was Queen Mera, Orin's wife.

"Welcome to Atlantis Percy. I hope you like it here." Orin stood up from his throne and swam toward Percy. The queen followed her husband's example. Once they met face to face, Aquaman extended his hand, offering a greeting. Demigod gladly accepted the gesture and they shook hands. Seeing that they king is in no danger, the guards swam away _very hastily._ "Swim with me please. I wanted to show you something."

Percy shrugged and followed the king. They followed through the palace, earning various reactions from it's denizens. Some, probably the guards present at the whole 'Percy incident' either gave him a thankful glare or swam at increased speed. Others, who probably knew him only from tales and gossips gave him curious looks. No one dared to stop them out of respect for their king or fear of Percy. Probably mixture of both in most cases.

"Tell me Percy. Why did you come to the bar we first met?" Orin asked once they swam out of the Palace

"I just landed in this world. It was after really tiring day and I was seriously hungry. I hoped to get something to eat there. Back then I had no idea about this world and you guys. " Percy answered honestly. There was no real point in hiding anything anyway. They were allies and future teammates.

"But why Amnesty Bay. From what you told us Olympus was in new York and you've never been in this town before."

"If I had to guess, Fates decided to play me one last time. I think gods cheated again and sent me to this world to punish me. I wished for life without gods, but they got replaced by you guys and whole lot of evil guys."

Queen Mera tensed at each mention of Gods. She wasn't overly religious, but hearing someone talk about them so... casually was new experience. "Why would they want to punish you in such cruel way. Giving false promise of peace is... cruel punishment."

"Yeah. I don't know if you heard, but they are really good at that. Tantalus, Lycaon, Sisyphus... They got the short stick. At least I can still do something. Make some real change. Zeus is a prick. Only thing he cares is his throne and maybe his children as long as it benefits him." Percy was really bitter at the gods.

Orin had easier time accepting the way Percy referred to gods like an equals rather than well... gods. He learned from Diana that Percy rejected godhood twice already. He had to swear never to reveal anything about it to anyone, including his wife. Wonder Woman told him everything she learned from young Demigod in hopes of making him understand the boy and giving him a second chance. It worked. "Enough of this subject. I actually hoped to get your input on something while you are here. That is if you are okay with it."

"Yeah. I don't exactly have any plans for next... four days so I can as well help with whatever it is."

"To the science center then."

"Excuse me my king, but I have to go. My students await me at the conservatory." Queen Mera kissed her husband goodbye before swimming into completely opposite direction to where they headed.

* * *

When they entered science center's main hall Percy's attention was immediately drawn toward giant starfish frozen in the center of the room. It was at least 50ft high. Percy was amazed. Such life forms were unknown to mortal scientists in his world which meant it was either newly discovered species, some mythological monster or an alien.

"Amazing, isn't it? I found it while exploring northern parts of the kingdom. It spend millennia frozen like this, but it still shows life signs and even some trace brain function." A bald, Caucasian man came to them. His gray hair and beard floated in the water.

"Percy, meet Vulko, our chief scientific advisor and head of the Atlantean Science Center. He is responsible for this project."

"Nice to meet you. May I ask something?" Percy starred at the life form towering over them. "Are there any atlantean myths regarding creatures similar to this?"

Vulko was at first surprised by the question, but quickly understood where Percy was going. "No. As far as our knowledge goes, there weren't any recorded in the archives, but it is possible the knowledge was lost over time."

"I was hoping you could help the science division analyze the creature and maybe try establishing telepathic connection with it." Orin spoke up.

"I can try, but if it is of Alien origin it might not respond." Percy focused on the creature, trying to reach through the ice to it. For a brief moment, he thought he managed to establish connection, but suddenly images started to appear in his mind. Whatever this thing was it probed his mind while at the same time it gave him his own memories. A fleet of different aliens, each piloting a ship. Everyone had a small version of this star on their face. The armada seemed to be endless. Then, his vision shifted and he saw what could be a bridge of bigger ship, where similar star was piloting the whole thing. At the same time, three words kept being repeated in his mind: 'A _ll. Hail. Starro.'_ The creature kept looking through his memories when suddenly, a loud shriek pierced his head. Percy finally managed to break the connection. Memories of Tartarus started flooding his head, but he slowly pushed it back to the deep corner of his mind by focusing on the good times. He felt weak, but did not faint. He wasn't Jason after all.

"This thing... I think it's name is Starro. He is definitely alien. I... I think I saw him on his conquest. An armada of different aliens wore masks resembling him. They... I don't know. I never saw anything like it. It tried to read my mind, but apparently encountered something it couldn't handle."

"Incredible. When you made a connection, it's brain waves increased tenfold. But then, after you broke the connection waves almost disappeared. You... Whatever it saw in your brain put it into catatonic state. A coma if you wish. I shudder at the idea what could it be to damage his mind so much."

"It's best none of you know." Percy said mysteriously before excusing himself and swimming away, much to their confusion.

He wandered for about half an hour, admiring the beauties of lost civilization. No one bothered him, with people either not recognizing him or feared him too much to approach. He didn't mind. Not attracting attention while under the sea was new experience to him and it honestly felt great. Water was his element and while swimming he could relax. All the negative emotion of past few weeks cleared and he was left with happy memories. After pointless wandering Percy decided to head back to the palace. He wanted to turn back, but he hit someone.

"Sorry. I didn't look where I was going. Forgive me sir." To Percy's surprise the person he crashed with was half-octopus. "I did not mean to bump into you"

Percy gave him a warm smile. "You don't have to apologize. It was my fault. I turned so suddenly you had no chance to stop. I'm Percy by the way. Who are you if I may ask?"

"I am Topo, student at conservatory of Sorcery." Seeing Percy's puzzled look Topo pointed to large building nearby. "That is this building over there." Altough it was built in overall Greek theme, mass of neon-like lights and statues of unicorn hipocampi made it look a bit like some casino to the young demigod.

"Wait. Isn't that where Queen Mera teaches?" Percy remembered how she said something about it.

"Oh yes! Queen Mera is one of the greatest sorcerers out there. She usually runs advanced classes, so I never see her really." There was a tint of sadness in Topo's voice.

"Do you want to?" Percy asked. "I think I want to see how are her lessons going." He gave his signature troublemaker's grin.

"I don't know. Usually, we are not supposed to attend higher level lessons."

"Don't worry. I wanted to talk to her anyway."

They swam together, ignoring other students giving Topo curious look. Young student wanted to disappear in deepest hole because of how much attention he earned, but Percy placed a hand on his shoulder and gave him reassuring glare. No one bothered them in any active way until they got to the training arena. Before Percy even had time to look around, a large ball of electrified water came tumbling toward him. Acting on an impulse, he focused on the water and made it stop, before separating it into several smaller charged balls, ready for another attack. Then, he looked around and saw two people: boy and a girl, battle with each other. They both used mostly water based attacks, but the girl incorporated usage of her surrounding and terrain while the boy was fighting in very predictable way. It took Percy ten seconds to figure out his fighting style and he couldn't stop himself from shouting what he was going to do before he even did it. That got attention of both of the fighters. They halted and looked at him and Topo surprised. Queen Mera swam toward them and both students followed her.

"Percy? I thought you are helping my husband with something."

"I did. After that, I was wandering through the city. When I wanted to return, I met this young student. He reminded me that I had something I wanted to ask you about." Saying that, Percy presented Topo who before tried to hide behind Percy.

"G-Good af-afternoon m-my Queen." Young student shyly greeted the queen.

"Welcome. Topo, right? Kaldur'ahm told me about you. He said you have some potential. Maybe I will come to see you later. For now, forgive me but I am curious as to what matter is troubling Percy." She turned toward the Demigod.

"Well, this is rather private and I would prefer to discuss it without..." He nodded toward two students. "Witnesses."

"Garth and Tula can stay and listen. I trust them completely and so can you." Queen defended her pupils.

"And I am not leaving you alone with he Majesty for one moment." Garth was a bit angry with Percy for mocking him during the battle.

Percy smiled genuinely "Don't worry. I have no foul intention toward her. And even if so, you wouldn't stand a chance. I've seen how you fight."

"What was that supposed to mean?" Garth was getting more and more irritated with each word coming from the demigod.

"What you heard. It took me ten seconds to learn your tactic, abilities and fighting style. You go by the book. No improvisation, no initiative. Your techniques might be advanced, but you are repeating them like beginner."

"Oh! And you are an expert?" Truth to be told Garth was actually aware of his mistakes, but he was not going to admit to it just yet.

"Yes." Was all Percy replied. Garth wanted to continue, but Tula grabbed his hand and sent him a smile. He immediately calmed down.

Queen watched this exchange with curiosity. "Maybe you would want to prove it? It's been long time since I had a chance to spar with someone. Would you be so kind as to help me show them how the real fight looks like?"

"With pleasure Queen." Percy half-bowed.

They both got into position on opposite sides of the arena with Garth, Tula and Topo observing them from tribunes. Percy summoned his trident, earning surprised glance from the rest. He just shrugged and got into battle stance. Once the combat began, Mera quickly threw multiple balls of energized water at him, but he swiftly dodged and responded by creating an icy stream directed at her. She made a shield around her, but Percy's water froze it. Taking advantage of her limited vision, Percy dashed toward. He plunged the trident into the barrier and shattered it, at the same time forcing the shards to fly at her. In the last moment, queen dodged and reciprocated with another few energy balls, but this time Percy absorbed them into his trident. The head of his weapon shined and he created several beams of light and directed them at her. Queen dodged and summoned several semi-transparent sharks that attacked Percy, but to her surprise before they touched Percy they dispersed before any managed to touch him. He then created a tornado of water around himself obscuring her vision. When the whole thing died out, he was nowhere to be seen. A feeling of something cold pressing to her back right between her shoulder blades made her realize he was behind her.

"Yield?"

"Yes. Good battle Percy. I must admit your tactics were unorthodox, but effective."

"Yours were also quite creative, but no one can beat son of Poseidon underwater..." Seeing others glare at him he quickly added "your majesty."

Garth, Tula and Topo swam to where they stood.

"That. Was. Amazing!" Tula was overjoyed. "First you just... and then... and the queen then... and you... Argh! That was so awesome."

Garth was also smiling. "Forgive my previous attitude. Now I see that what I took for impudence were really a words of experienced warrior. You have my humble apologies." He tried to bow, but Percy signed him to stop.

"Please don't bow. It makes me uncomfortable. As for experience, that is exactly that. Training can only get you so far. Improvisation and adaptability are hard to learn in safe environment. Your friend here shows natural talent, but she also lack experience I earned on the battlefield." Percy then turned to the queen. "Now about this private matter?"

"yes. Follow me to my office. We can discuss it there." She motioned and the two of them swam away. Garth and Tula were there standing.

"He is right, you know?" He started. "Training is not real battle"

"What do you mean?"

"Training here will not teach us the skills he mentioned. We can learn theory, but practice is out there, where the action is really happening. Where the king and Kaldur are. Maybe... Maybe we should... I must discuss something with the king." With that Garth swam away

* * *

"So? What did you want to talk about Percy?" Mera asked once they were alone

"Is there a spell that can lock some memories away?"

"Well, I can think of few, but what exactly do you have in mind."

"I was helping Aquaman with the giant starfish that science team discovered. After establishing connection it fed me images, but there was more. It probed my mind. At one point it screamed in pain and went into catatonic state." Percy shuddered at the memory of scream this creature gave. He saw tartarus through thick veil of mist, but if in this world there was no mist, it's hard to imagine what atrocities people would see if they probed his mind.

"Do you know which of your memories caused it?" Queen was curious what could be so terrifying to cause such reaction and how is that Percy is still sane.

"In my world there is something called the Mist. It creates a veil that shields eyes of mortal and to some extend demigods from everything mythological. This world doesn't seem to have any whatsoever. I am unsure it the Mist even works on aliens or if someone is reading my memories. Also... I was in places that weren't exactly pleasant."

"What places?" Queen was getting more and more curious.

" _Tartarus"_ The feeling of dread filled the room.

"You've... been to Tartarus? Myths says that no mortal ever returned." Mera couldn't shake the shock that overtook her.

"I've traveled it. My girlfriend... ex-girlfriend and I fell into the Pit during one of the quests. After two painful weeks we managed to escape, but it wasn't without a cost." Percy was trying his best not to show weakness in front of Queen of Atlantis.

"That's horrible."

"I won't try to act brave and shrug it off. It was horrifying. And we had mist. I can't even start to imagine what this creature saw when it looked at me. I want to make sure this never happens. I don't want to put others through this."

Queen Mera was surprised by this. Myths were never clear on how Tartarus really looks like except it was a pit of eternal torture. Sending anyone there, much less teenagers is... unimaginable. "With this, I cannot help. All spells known to me or Atlanteans make the persons forget, but others can still access the memory." Seeing Percy sadden face she added "But there is another way. Maybe you should practice with Martian Manhunter some techniques to protect your mind."

"Will do. There is one more thing... Since I arrived here, my powers, strength, durability, endurance, dexterity, healing factor, even mind processes are increased. And the air here is full of energy. With each breath, I feel like I'm drinking some nectar and eating ambrosia. Even the gifts god gave me seem empowered. Do you have any theories?"

Mera was not really surprised. From seeing what Percy could do she figured there was more than just being born with it. Not even Wonder Woman could match him in terms of raw power. There was also the fact he didn't just used Poseidon's trident, he bound with it. In the past anyone could take it, but now... she remembered when they tried to take the trident when he was unconscious, but it shocked whoever grabbed it. She had to manipulate the water around it to finally safely transfer it to the League's vault. "Well... where exactly does your power come from?"

"I inherited them from my father. I am half-god, so some of his control over different domains is also in me. That's why I can control water so easily or cause earthquakes or talk with horses."

"Hm... I think that's the reason why your powers are so great. You say at each moment you are infused with divine energy..."

"It used to be much more intense when I first came here, now I think I adapted."

"You asked for my theory so here it is: Back in your world your powers came from your father, but here he is absent. Instead, you started drawing directly from the source, that is his domains. The power was raw, pure of any outer influence. The power was slowly pushing your body to it's limits, until at some point you would probably incinerate, much like after consuming godly food. I think the 'call' you heard from the trident came from the fact it recognized you as an heir of Poseidon. Once you grabbed it, the weapon finished the process. You did not become a god, but still you channel the strength of the oceans."

"But what with Diana? She is Daughter of Zeus, so in theory she should channel his domains."

"With her it is a bit different. She was born in this world, so her body was adjusted to... unique climate if you can call it. She was never really anchored to any source of power as opposed to you." Mera paused to let it sink. "That's all just a bunch of speculation based on my knowledge of sorcery. It can all be false, but seems like best possible explanation based on what you told me.

Percy analyzed her words in silence, trying to comprehend what she told him. Basically, his human half got changed into godly. He was more god than human, except without ancient laws limiting him or never-aging thing. Plus he still bled (occasionally) so he could be killed. Maybe it wasn't that bad, but with that much power came great... need to take a nap. He thanked queen for everything and left back to the palace. She asked him to come tomorrow and give her students some pointers on combat sorcery, to which he agreed.

* * *

**Poseidonis**

**August 27th, 13:00**

Percy and Aquaman awaited kaldur'ahm at the Zeta Gate. Previous day was mostly uneventful for the demigod. He spent most of it giving pointers to Queen Mera's students. She kept her promise and met with Topo. Once young boy managed to overcome his initial shyness, he actually impressed her. She agreed to take him under her wings, much to Percy's satisfaction. In the afternoon Percy helped a bit more with 'Starro'. Part of Athena's blessing gave him P.H.D. in marine biology and he was able to help with some research. He started to actually get along with Aquaman.

_Recognized: Aqualad B0-2_

Kaldur was happy to be back home. As much as he liked being superhero and learning from his king, he missed Atlantis. And there was Tula. He hoped to reveal his feeling to her during this stay. Lately, since Percy arrived he felt no longer needed at the Team. As a leader he failed miserably. He couldn't control his own teammates or keep any level of discipline, which came to Percy naturally. He couldn't even lead by example, getting defeated by Clay-Face. Honestly, Percy would be a great leader. It took him one sentence to stop the conflict between Wally and Artemis and get their head in a game, which did not last after he left for Atlantis a day before mission.

"Kaldur. Nice to see you." Orin and Percy came toward him.

He saluted to the King and shook demigods hand. "Nice too see you both as well. I missed this place so much."

"I don't blame you. I've been here only two days and already I love it here." Percy smiled genuinely

"You are always welcome here Kaldur. Walk with me please. See you at the dinner Percy." With that Orin and Kaldur swam away, leaving Percy to do what he wanted. There was still few hours to the party, so he decided to visit Atlantean library. While Athena's blessing finished his education and removed dyslexia, he still had much to learn, especially in this new world full of aliens and magic. Dinner time came so fast Percy didn't realize he is already late. He dashed to the palace and barged into dining hall almost breaking the doors from hinges.

"Sorry I am late." He paused to look at the other guests. There was king and queen (obviously), Aqualad and to his surprise Tula. "I hope I didn't interrupt anything."

"No worry Percy" Orin reassured him. "We only just began. Come join us."

Percy sat at the place prepared for him and listened to the conversation. Mera and Tula told them about life at the Conservatory and Aquaman gave some stories about his recent adventures. Percy noticed that Kaldur wasn't really focused on the conversation and instead kept looking at young sorceress. When it came to Percy to tell something, he decided to narrate about his discoveries in the Science Center, revealing the alien origin of giant starfish and what he and Vulko figured from analyzing the creature without breaking the ice yet. Finally, Queen and King brought down the most important news about new heir. Percy only smiled. Technically speaking, he had right to pretend for the throne being demigod son of their protector, from whom all kings of Atlantis descended. Apparently Atlan was his half-brother. Proving it would be hard, but it didn't bother him. He did not want the throne. All the paperwork would kill him before his enemies could get a chance.

After dinner ended Kaldur asked Tula for a walk and Percy only sighted. Aqualad would soon end up with a broken heart. As much as it pained him, he decided it was best not to interfere. Sometimes it's best to hear it from the source. He stayed with King and Queen until Orin was called back. Not having much to do, he just talked with Mera a bit about magic, comparing notes regarding history of Atlantis and telling her some about some of his quest. She was quite nice and would be a great mother. She made him miss his mother a bit, but he reminded himself that this was for the best. He would only endanger her every time they met. Suddenly, a series of explosions sounded through city. Percy immediately summoned his trident and rushed to see what happened, Mera following him.

Outside of Palace one of the soldiers came to queen and gave her damage report. He was cut mid-sentence by a shot on his back. Percy created a shield around him and Mera, stopping any further attacks. Rest of the soldiers weren't that lucky. Most were taken by surprise and they were overwhelmed by superior enemy forces. Queen created another shield and nodded to Percy to attack.

Percy willed the currents to launch him toward, dashing at incredible speed with his trident. He knocked out five manta soldiers before landing on enemy lines. He then pointed his trident at the rest and channeled his power through the weapon. All their weapons were chocked and one by one all exploded when they fired either at him or other soldiers. When they were disarmed, guards took quick care of them. Just then, Aqualad, Tula and Garth came into the yard before Palace.

"What's going on? This are Black Manta's soldiers." Kaldur spoke.

"They are attacking all over the city. We've spotted explosion in sectors 1,2,3 and 5." Garth summarized.

"But none in sector 4. The Science Center! They want to get Starro!" Tula figured out. Suddenly, she fell back, shot by incoming reinforcements. Angry queen summoned giant spiritual octopus to protect them and fight the attackers.

"Garth, stay with Tula. Kaldur, you protect the queen and the heir. I will deal with this Black Manta." Percy gave his orders.

"Let me go with you. I want to settle the score" Garth was burning with rage while still gently holding unconscious Tula.

"No. You two must stay here. If something happened to Queen Mera I wouldn't forgive myself and Orin wouldn't forgive any of us. I can manage by myself. They won't know what hit them."

"Stay safe Percy." Aqualad gave him an atlantean salute.

* * *

Percy dashed toward the Science Center at top speed, knocking as many Manta soldiers unconscious as possible. When he finally got there, he didn't bother with stealth. Sure he didn't know Tula that long, but she was still one of few people he actually knew. No one messes with his friends. One strong punch made the doors fly away. He then dashed taking out every soldier that was stupid enough to stop them. He barged into main hall where Starro was kept. He did not slow down. Using his speed as additional advantage he punched each soldier unconscious before they even reacted. Once he got behind their lines, he chocked their weapons and watch them explode, knocking out most of them. He went into battle mode. Everything seemed to slow down, but it was in fact just his mind working on increased speed. Three soldiers that didn't get knocked out drew combat knifes and charged at him. With one swipe of the trident first one was down. Second ended with uppercut and tossed into the ceiling and third one earned a kick that sent him flying into wall, leaving nice new hole.

Just then, twin red beams hit his back and pain surged through his body. Water immediately healed the wound, but another set of lasers already went toward him. Percy created water shield that he then changed into ice shards that he sent toward the source. Black Manta dodged the icicles, but he did not prepare for them to be followed by angry Demigod. Percy smashed his whole body weight at the villain and then smacked him in the face. He was about to knock him unconscious, but then glass dome broke and support soldiers came in. Some of them attached lines to the Starro and started carrying him up, but Percy cut the line. Black Manta, already on retreat turned around and screamed some cliche vengeance line before firing a rocket at Starro. Percy did not react fast enough and whole thing blew up. Taking advantage of the chaos created by explosion, both Manta and his troopers disappeared into the sub and swam away. Percy wanted to chase them, but he remembered about Tula and Mera. He dashed back to the palace to find them both safe. Kaldur and Garth were exhausted, but they managed to defeat most of the attackers. Few did escape, but they were in great minority.

* * *

Percy and Kaldur were preparing to leave. King came to bid them farewell. The portal was already charging when Tula and Garth came toward.

"Wait! One more thing!" Tula dashed toward almost crashing into the two of them before Percy manipulated water to slow her down.

"What's the matter Tula" Kaldur was curious what did his friends wanted with him.

"We discussed things with Queen Mera and the King. This year of study will be our last in the Conservatory. We will be joining you in the surface world." Garth explained.

"But... Why?" Aqualad was confused. When King offered him a chance to become his protege, Garth refused.

"Percy." Tula simply said. "He made us realize that some skills can't be learned in the academy. We need to practice. It doesn't mean we finish the education. Queen promised to prepare a special training regime for us to keep up with the program, but... the way you two fight and use your gifts is something I've never seen. I..." she grabbed Garth's hand "We want to learn. Percy was right. Studying in safe environment limits us. The world is not academy."

Kaldur was about to say something, but Percy was faster "That's a great idea. The team would be whelmed to have you." Seeing Aqualad's face demigod opened the mental link to talk in complete privacy. This time he remembered to lower the volume. " _What's troubling you?"_

_"It's just... I don't know if I really want them to join the team. Tula... They would constantly be there as a reminder of what I don't have. I don't think I am ready to move on just like that. I am happy for them, but it's just that..._

_"Don't worry. I get it. Luckily for you they are not coming immediately. You will move on with time. It will not pain anymore. Just follow the current and everything will somehow turn okay one way or another."_

Kaldur gave him a nod of approval and they traveled back.

* * *

**Undisclosed location**

**August 27th, 23:30**

Black manta awaited the six screens to activate and show him the members of The light. Soon enough, the familiar silhouettes appeared and meeting began.

"The attack was a failure. I did not obtain the target and was forced to initiate plan B." Black Manta paused before pulling small flash drive from his pocket. "I did copy everything they had on the 'project Starro'. Apparently this new... superhero is much stronger than we initially anticipated." Manta plugged the disk and holographic images containing notes and research results appeared.

"Bah! The boy is not a threat. This puny demigod is just an irritation. Minor setback." One of the members spoke.

"If I remember correctly, this boy has a record on surprising us. We should keep a close eye on him." Another voice joined the discussion. "And acquire him for the light. If we get large enough sample, Cadmus might be able to..."

"NO!" The first member screamed. "Don't you dare mess up with him. He is mine! You heard that? Mine! mine! mine! I want to have revenge on the three hags and what better way to do it than destroying their favorite toy?"

"Your personal vendetta will have to wait. Right now this teenage 'hero' is giving us more and more trouble."

"It would be easier if we had some more knowledge about him."

Black Manta silently listened to them. He was unsure what to think of it. On one hand he didn't like being ignored, but at the same time he was glad that they did not punish him for his failure. After the disgrace of Ocean-Master, The light has been looking to replace Orm. This mission was supposed to be his chance to prove his value and earn him 'seat at the table'.

"Ekhm! Excuse my boldness, but I might have something. If the gossips I heard about him are true and he truly is son of Poseidon, there might be something." If this gambit worked, Manta would definitely earn a place in the Light "Once, while exploring underwater caves I stumbled upon drowned temple dedicated to Neptune. There, I found a certain vial. It was made of crystal and emblazoned with small diamonds forming constellation of Orion. There was this deep green liquid inside. Analysis revealed it to be scorpion's venom. I believe it to be what was left from the very scorpion that killed famed hunter. Legend said that it was specifically created to hunt children of Poseidon, so maybe it will be enough to deal with them or at least weaken him enough for us to capture him." Seeing their puzzled look he wanted to add something, but one of the members was faster and clarified it.

"Conventional poisons, no matter how strong will not work on him. Ichor in his veins will neutralize them before they manage to deal any damage. Mythical poison created specifically to hurt Orion though..." There was a creepy laughter "Might actually work."

"Thank you for your input Black Manta. I say welcome to The Light." Yet another voice sounded. All screens cleared of statics and silhouettes were replaced by images of the members. "Now... Let's discuss our latest discovery in Bialya. It might actually shift the balance in out favor."

* * *

Mount Justice

**September 3rd, 16:21**

The team gathered in mission room, already in their gear. Aquaman and Percy joined them last, the former still sweating from the training.

"You sure know your way with a blade. It's an honor to practice with you." Aquaman praised Percy. He was defeated several times in a row.

Percy wanted to answer humbly, but Batman interrupted him "Focus. Both of you. Two days ago we detected an energy surge on Bialyan desert. We are not sure what caused it, but it triggered all alarms in our satellites. We want you to investigate what exactly caused it and report back. Bialya is run by queen Bee, a dangerous dictator who refused to sign Justice League Charter. This mission is unsanctioned, so no radio contact. If you are captured, it could lead to international diplomatic incident."

Megan smiled and said to Batman "Don't worry. We can use mind-link to communicate without threat of being seen."

Hearing it, Percy took a step back. "You are not touching my brain. It's too dangerous."

"Don't worry. I won't probe deep. It only transfer surface thoughts." Miss M. tried to reassure him, but he only shook his head.

"And what if it fails. Or overloads. Or react differently with me? I am not willing to risk exposing you to my memories. For your own good."

Batman squinted his eyes. "Explain. Now."

"Eh... Guess it's only fair. While I was in Atlantis I established mental link with an Alien. I only wanted to talk, but he wrestled the control and started looking through my memories. He stumbled upon my time in... the Pit and went into deep coma. His brain practically died."

"What is 'the Pit' and why would it damage him so much if you are still standing?" Artemis asked.

" _Tartarus"_ Percy answered in dread filled voice. "Basically, it's the deepest, darkest hell, existing as a place where monsters regenerate after being killed." Percy gulped before continuing. "Air there is poisonous, ground feels like walking on shattered glass. You are constantly surrounded by aura of misery and death. Only thing to sate you is river of flames that burns your insides only to regenerate them." He closed his eyes and a tear fell on his cheek. "And that is not the scariest part. It is all but an illusion created by the Mist. Real Tartarus is a body of ancient Primordial. Monsters are his blood cells, air is his breath and ground is his deformed skin. For just a moment I saw his real form. I was lucky to be pulled back, but I pushed the memory into darkest part of my subconsciousness. This... is probably what he saw. I spent two weeks there with my ex-girlfriend."

The team looked with large eyes and open mouths. Percy never really told them about his Demigod quests. Now they finally understood why. This was not like anything they've seen. Even Wally, although he wanted to argue that it was just different dimension to which they traveled at some point was too stunned to actually answer. Batman, although he kept his cold facade, was mentally cursing himself for his initial approach to the boy. This was a survivor who went through literal hell and he hunted him because of his paranoia.

First to finally do something was Miss M. She flew to Percy and hugged him tightly. At first, he stiffened, but soon he embraced the hug. One by one, the rest of the team joined in and soon they were all standing there. For the first time in long time, Percy actually felt safe. They were here for him and he was determined to be there for them. "Thanks guys. This really means a lot to me. Now you understand why I don't want anyone to look into my mind? An accidental slip and you might fall into coma. I... I wouldn't be able to live with myself if this happened."

Aqualad silently pondered the problem. He remembered their first meeting and idea came to his mind. "What if you initiated the mind link? Like you did when we first met. It felt different than what Miss M. does."

"nunu. It doesn't work that way. I can only do this with creatures of the sea."

"But maybe if you connect to Kaldur, I can use him as a safety net to talk. A transfer station. You would hear whatever he heard through mind-link, without actually exposing your mind. He can't explore your mind, so there won't be any danger!" Miss M was happy that they found the solution.

Percy analyzed the idea, trying to find any rational flaw. Unable to do so, he finally agreed to try.

Batman nodded. "There is one more thing. The energy signature. Percy. It was similar to the one we recorded at the point of your arrival. We have reasons to believe that this might be something from your world. Be careful."

When bat walked away the team started to discuss the strategy. Robin was pointing out things on the topographic map of area surrounding the anomaly when Wally suddenly interrupted him. "Percy. There is one more problem. You still don't have a superhero name. You can't expect us to call you Percy during the mission."

"And what would be wrong with that?" Percy got confused.

"Dude. Secret identity? Rings a bell? There is a reason why I don't parade as Wally West among my enemies." KF explained like it was simplest thing ever.

"Huh? I thought it was aesthetic choice. Also, I don't see Artemis having the 'superhero' name whatsoever." Percy defended.

"She is an archer. Like Artemis, the roman goddess of the hunt." Wally explained.

"Greek." Earning confused glare from Wally and Megan Percy elaborated. "Artemis is Greek goddess. Her roman counterpart is named Diana."

"Doesn't matter."

"It does when one tolerates you and the other wants you castrated or changed into jackalope." This earned Percy yet another set of confused glares. "Nevermind. Point is I don't see a need for changing name for missions. I managed just fine like it is since I was twelve."

"Dude. Superhero names rock. What about Tide? Riptide? Hurricane? Typhon? Triton?" The last two suggestions earned the dangerous glare from Percy.

"No, no and no. And I won't take name of my brother. He sees me as a competition as it is." Wally wanted to say something, but Percy sensed his intention and stopped him. "Don't even try mentioning Ariel. She is more spoiled than girls at Clarion Ladies Academy" This earned a curious look from KF

"One day you must tell me more about your world."

Superboy stepped toward. "What about simply Perseus? It was a name of a hero mythology."

"Firstly, he was a son of Zeus not Poseidon. Secondly, I hate this name. Whenever I hear someone call me that they usually want to kill me in one way or another."

Auqalad thought for a moment. "What about... Neptune. Or Poseidon if you prefer." Percy was about to protest, but Kaldur continued. "Before you say no, consider it. You already carry the trident your father gave you. It wouldn't be a sign of disrespect toward him, but rather the opposite. You would bring glory to his name."

Percy analyzed his logic and decided that it wasn't actually that bad. "Well... Poseidon is too much, but Neptune I can live with." He summoned his trident and rose it high above his head. "Behold the mighty power of Neptune!" With that he made the blade crackle with electricity.

"Too much theatrics, but the name suits you. Welcome abroad Neptune."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> and that's it for today folks. I will follow on with the plot. Next chapter will have much more surprises. I finally had chance to explain why Percy got so overpowered. Also, I used the name Titanium-carbon fiber a.k.a tiber metal when describing Percy's armor. It came from another fanfiction I read some time ago. I completely forgot that. Credits for this go to AlfyreGree and story "The God of Heroes" Read it. It's really great.


	5. Bereft

**Bialya**   
**Sptember 4th, 18:34**

Team successfully landed Bioship just behind the border and infiltrated the enemy territory. Everyone were in their stealth-mode to avoid detection. Kaldur's plan worked perfectly. Percy could hear and speak with the team with no danger of accidentally causing them all to fall into coma. They silently moved toward the coordinates to find a military encampment. Miss M wanted to fly in invisible and assess the situation, but Percy stopped her.

"Not so fast. We have no idea what is in there." She stopped, but still levitated ready to leave. Percy sighted and continued explanation. "If Batman is right and whatever came through this anomaly is there, you might be in danger. All of you are. None of the weapons you possess will work on monsters. And their sure as heck will hurt you. I will go." He summoned his trident and to his surprise it came to him in darker version. It was still gold, but the shaft was concealed by shadows. _Cool. My weapon has it's steal mode too. "_ I can deal with the threat."

"Yeah right." Wally was skeptic. Percy was strong, but he often moved like an elephant. "Superboy is more stealthy than you."

Neptune smiled and focused on the trick he had been practicing. He took a step back and shadows embraced him and he partially disappeared. Apparently Hades blessing was more potent than he was initially led to believe. He still couldn't rise dead or shadow travel, but he learned how to merge with darkness and hide. While moving through shades, he made no sound and was hard to spot for untrained eye. His dark-colored armor and black hair perfectly melded with darkness. His face was also covered by shadows, but his sea-green eyes were standing out a bit. He stepped out of the obscurity and smiled even wider. "I will manage."

Kaldur stayed silent for a moment and analyzed pros and cons. Percy made a good point. He was the most qualified of them all. "Fine, You will go. Miss M. Keep an eye from the air and be ready to help. Remember. Recon only."

Neptune nodded and stepped back into darkness. Without making any sound whatsoever he sneaked toward the camp. When he got to the material serving as a wall, he stopped for a moment, wondering how to get in without rising suspicion. He tried sensing life behind this wall, but luckily there was no one close. He cut one of the straps holding it to the pole and sneaked inside. He was now standing behind a line of tanks. He counted at least ten. There was also few trucks to carry soldiers and six jeeps armed with mini-guns on top. A thought crossed his mind to try and sabotage it all, but he dismissed it. This wasn't why he came there.

Percy progressed toward the tents. He was about to enter one of them, but suddenly a powerful impulse passed through mind-link. The connection with Kaldur was terminated without any warning. He looked around and noticed all soldiers mobilizing and preparing to move out. No one came toward him, so he figured they did not spot him. A realization came to him. They did not find him, but M'gann. He sped up to get a better look on the situation. First tanks already moved out, but a group of soldiers formed a tight circle around someone. Some hooded man stepped out of a tent and looked around. Once he noticed the crowd of soldiers he walked there. They separated to let him pass and Percy had chance to confirm his suspicions. Inside laid unconscious Miss M. Soldiers aimed their guns at her. Percy jumped from one shade to another and closed on to hear what is going on.

"So what are supposed to do with her?" A soldier wearing sergeant's uniform asked. The hooded man pondered the question before finally answering.

"Hm... Kill her. We won't be able to contain her and she might compromise the whole operation." The voice sounded strange, not entirely human.

Before soldiers fully comprehended the order, Neptune launched himself from the shadow and punched the nearest one. He flew away, tackling at least dozen others. Without giving them time to react to new threat, Percy then stomped on the ground and released an earthquake that knocked all remaining enemies in medium range. He was about to pick up Megan up, when a paralyzing pain went through his head. Someone was trying to break into his mind. Percy tried pushing him away. He managed to turn around to see the hooded man, now with the hood down. He was right. This wasn't normal human. In front of Neptune stood a pale bald man. His brain is visible though a clear dome over it, with some strips of skin over the dome. Three red lines decorated each cheek.

"Sneaky little bastard. Somehow you avoided detection and feedback from my mental attack on your martian. Very well. Let's see what you have inside this mind of yours." The pain in the head increased. "Psimon says: submit!" Percy was immediately stripped of all strength to resist the intrusion. He was mildly aware of soldiers slowly standing up and reorganizing. This bald man was now scouring his memories until connection was broken. "You! You... How are you not insane?" Psimon was trying to step back, but he tripped over one of the guns and fell. He was now crawling back. "You... what was that place?"

Percy slowly became aware of the situation. A sound of unlocked machine gun awaken him. Immediately, his mind went into battle mode. Time seemed to slow down as he looked around. Before they even opened fire, Neptune fired water from his gauntlet, freezing it at the muzzles and causing most of the guns to explode, knocking some soldiers back. Those, who only now came into action started firing, but Percy dodged all the incoming bullets. He then created micro earth-quake to launch himself high in the air. They tried shooting at him, but he deflected the bullets with his trident. Still in the air, he gathered the water from now melted icicles and used it to distract the soldiers. He then landed on one, immediately knocking him out with the impact and proceeded punching and hitting through their ranks. He was careful not to kill any one though. They might serve evil queen, but it doesn't mean they should die because of carrying out the orders. The soldiers, seeing that firing at him is completely ineffective decided to instead run away. Or how their commander kindly called it: " _tactical retreat!"_ Initially, the instincts told Neptune to chase them, but he remembered about Miss M. He dashed there on his top speed. She was slowly starting to wake, but Percy still splashed some water on her, just to be sure.

"Katchhhhaa, s'nomoth… K'azzar M'gann? N'da M'arzz... Ah'lunzz… s'sess b'rakahzz…Hw'asheta!" She finally sat straight up and spoke in unknown language.

"Um... English please?" Percy was very dumbfounded. Athena blessing really did a number on him when he learned that he knew almost 70 languages. Maybe he would not kick her in the end... not so hard.

"Oh! Sorry. I did not realize I am on earth. How did I get here though..." She started speaking English which Percy was grateful for.

"Just sit here and try to rest. I will be right back." Neptune's eyes behind his mask darkened. He started walking toward Psimon, who was now cowering in the corner. "You! What have you done to her?!" Seeing that Psimon only cowered more, Percy hit the ground with blunt end of his trident. "Speak! NOW!"

"I... I ordered her to forget. But... Something went wrong. She was connected to others. It created a feedback loop..." He stumbled upon his words. "Her memory is shattered to pieces." Percy was about to knock him unconscious, but Psimon spoke more. "Who are you? What was that place? How... How are you still sane?"

"Maybe I'm not." Was Neptune's only response before he knocked him out with blunt end of the trident. He then walked back to Megan and helped her on her feet. "Sorry. I had to take out some trash." He gave a prominent smile. "I learned what is wrong with you though."

"Wrong? What would be wrong with me? Why would something be wrong at all?" She went into defensive. At first it surprised Percy, but then he just shrugged. After all she just woke up on alien planet that she never visited before.

"Your memory has been shattered to pieces by enemy telepath. You forgot... I don't know how much of your life."

"Hello Megan. Of course." She started levitating and her eyes glowed green. For about three seconds she was like this, which gave Percy time to look around and analyze the situation. The camp was half-ruined, with about three fourth of tents devastated after the earth quake. The screen surrounding the camp was either torn by the earthquake or soldiers he threw/punched. Most vehicles left or if they didn't earthquake and icicles took care of them. Some had torn wheels while other pierced engines or gas tanks. The place was massacred.

Finally, Miss M.'s eyes stopped glowing and she landed. "Ok. I repaired the damage to my memory, but I still can't figure out what exactly happened..."

"This guy happened." Percy pointed to the knocked out Psimon in the corner. "He used some psychic powers to make you forget, but mind-link between you and the team created some... feedback loop or whatever he called it. I'm no specialist in this thing."

"But how is that you were unaffected?" M'gann started to wonder. "Hello Megan! You weren't attached to the mind-link directly, but rather through Kaldur. That's why you only ended up with a big headache I imagine."

"Yeah. You fell down and they wanted to shot you so I intervened."

"So you took down the whole camp of trained soldiers? You don't look hurt in any way at all."

"Back home I fought in two wars, always against overwhelming enemy forces. Believe me when I say that this..." he made a hand gesture to show all the destruction "Was like child's play compared to what I had to deal with. Not killing them was hard, but they aren't worth it nor deserve it. They only carried the orders. This one on the other hand" He pointed the trident at Psimon "Should probably be put down for good, but... I don't like killing mortals." Seeing her puzzled look he wanted to explain, but he heard a loud roar and top of a tank landed not so far from them.

Miss M. quickly rose to, only to see soldiers closing on Superboy not so far from the outpost. "It's Co... Superboy. They are going to kill him!"

"Not on my watch. I am ready for round two." Percy gathered the water from nearby sources such as the pierced engines and stored what he could in his gloves. He carried the rest as he propelled himself with mini earth-quake to get there faster.

Even from afar they both knew that Superboy was in disadvantage. While the normal guns couldn't hurt him, tanks were armed with armor-piercing ammunition. Conner was already bleeding and his shirt was tore in multiple places. He kept attacking though, with even more fury than usual. There was something feral in his behavior. Percy formed a whip from the water and swiped it low to undercut the soldiers. Once they were down, the quickly close the distance while water bound them to the ground and solidified into ice. One of the tanks turned it's cannon at him and fired. Without missing a beat, Percy dodged the shell. He then tossed his trident at another tank to see it explode after weapon pierced the barrel just before it fired at Superboy. Not bothering to summon his weapon back, Neptune grabbed the tank and lifted it, before spinning around and using the additional momentum to throw it further away. Some soldiers opened fire at him, but he used water in his gauntlets to stop bullets.

While he was fending off most of the soldiers, Miss M. sneaked on Superboy and accessed his brain to try and repair shattered memories. Her eyes glowed green, but when she was sucked into his subconsciousness, she became visible. Some soldiers wanted to shoot her, but suddenly a black thing zoomed next to them and took their guns.

"Are we late to the Party?" KF asked. Suddenly, arrows came practically raining on surprised enemies. An irritating laughter filled the air as several explosions took out the jeeps that army used for increased mobility.

"Not at all Kid Flash. The Party is not over yet." Neptune smiled and pointed to incoming reinforcements. "I know you don't remember, but we are a team. Fight together and watch each other's back. Let's go!"

Neptune plunged his trident into nearby rock and salt water started pouring. He then twisted the tree-pronged spear and changed small stream into a flood under his command. The top of his weapon started crackling with lightning as he made the water into octopus-like tentacles that grabbed three incoming tanks and smashed them together before throwing them away. With heavy weaponry out of the way, team proceeded with their attack. The battle was quickly over.

After KF tied the soldiers up, Megan transported them all except Percy into joint mental realm. She remembered the warning he gave them the previous day. He just sat there, watching as Miss M. repair their memories. Once she was done, the Team finally could talk with them

"What exactly happened out there?" KF was first to break the silence. "Also dude" this was directed to Neptune "We knew you are strong, but I could never imagine that strong. You used heavy tank like a Frisbee. Exactly how much power do you have?"

"Enough to make the gods fear me. That is not important right now." He saw their looks, but completely ignored it. "Mission first. Time for stories will come later. Where is Aqualad?"

"Safe in the nearby cave. When we lost out memories, Superboy went on a rampage. He attracted much attention. Some of us blacked out, but an earthquake woke us. We had no idea what is going on, but by comparing notes and scraps of out memory we managed to make something out of it. Then, we saw you three dust like half an army. Of course we decided to join. Aqualad was still unconscious so we hid him and came to help."

"I will go check on him and restore his memory." M'gann volunteered.

"We must all move before more reinforcements come. Our mission is still in progress. I want to know what is it that they were guarding."

They separated and while Miss M. flew to help Kaldur, rest of the team went back to the outpost.

* * *

Whole base was ruined. Most of the tents were wrecked and machines turned into scraps. Only three tents, the ones furthest from the rest, survived. Neptune was leading them with his weapon ready in case some monster jumped on them, but once they checked that the place is clear they split up to cover more ground. Percy went to the still standing tents. First one was some kind of a lab, with multiple vials of what looked like blood in different places. He quickly looked into the files that were left, but most of it was in Bialyan which he did NOT know. Apparently in his world this country didn't exist. There was constant mention of "Project Cadmus 2.0", but beyond that there were nothing he could make sense of. With a bit more time he would probably figure out some of it, but instead he decided to pack it together with few samples of the blood. He was about to leave and torch this place when another thing got his attention: a small square of ambrosia was laying on one of the Petri dish he missed during haste search. He grabbed it and left the lab. He went to the next tent to continue the search when he heard a scream.

Immediately, Neptune rushed there to see what caused it. He entered the third tent to find two metal cages. There was small blanked and a bowl of some food that looked really untasteful. Percy's initial thought was that it was where they kept some animals, but then he saw what caused the scream. While one of the cages was open, in the other he noticed a young girl, about nine, with shining blond hair. She was tied with a golden rope and looked really beaten. Her clothes were tattered and there were cuts and bruises all over her visible skin. Percy wanted to break her out this instant, but he noticed why she screamed. A woman around 35-40 years old with straight black hair was laying on the floor. Psimon was holding her at gun point.

Neptune did not think. His muscles tensed and he tossed the trident at villain in front of him. Three blades entered Psimon's body without trouble piercing him through. His body went numb and gun fell of his hand.

"I..." He tried to say something but then his body just cracked and he landed face first. Life completely left his body and Percy could sense that at least part of this energy entered the trident. He walked to now empty corpse and picked his weapon.

"Sorry you had to witness it. I... It was him or you and I believe I made a right choice." The woman was still in a bit of a shock, but she walked to her daughter and tried opening the cage doors, alas without success. Percy grabbed the door with one hand and ripped them off, breaking the lock in the process. He let the woman untie the girl while he quickly cleared his weapon of blood.

"Thank you... Whoever you are." The woman turned to him and thanked. She was now carrying the little girl in her hands. Apparently little one passed out from stress.

"Yeah. Sorry. People call me Neptune." Her face remained stoic, but he could see a faint glimmer of hope in her eyes. "This is not really the best place to talk. Take her out of here and call the others."

"No need for that. We also heard the scream, but we got held up by some soldiers that felt too bra..." Wally paused mid-sentence when he saw Psimon's dead body. "What happened here?" The rest of the team, now including Miss Martian and Aqualad were standing there in shockk.

"I did what had to be done." Percy stated coldly. "He was trying to kill them." He pointed at the woman and the girl.

"That doesn't make it right." Robin said without the usual mischief in his voice. "Life is worth the same no matter to who it belongs."

"I have to disagree. Neptune made a right call. If he really had to chose between Psimon and his victim, he did what was for the best." Kaldur stood up to defend Percy.

"As much as this philosophical discussion is interesting, there is something wrong with my daughter." The woman spoke, her voice revealing barely any emotions, but they heard the distress in her voice. Percy walked over and touched girl's forehead. It was burning hot.

"Something is wrong. She has really high temperature." Percy applied some cold water to stop her mind from overheating. "We must get to the nearest hospital."

"No! No hospitals. They won't help her. Did you find anything in this camp that reassemble golden apple juice or brownie?" While the rest of the team was completely clueless as to what is going on, Percy immediately understood and pulled small square of Ambrosia from his private (infinite thanks to Apollo) reserves. He actually integrated the bag into his belt so he always had a supply with him.

"Here. Ambrosia should stabilize her." She extended her hand, but Percy did not hand it immediately. "I think there is no need to tell you that it will only work on a half-blood?"

"I am perfectly aware how it works Perseus." At this point team stopped understanding anything. How could she know Neptune's identity.

"Cabin?"

"Second Cohort for me, Cabin one for her." She responded.

"Ok guys. That's nice and all, but we've gotta move." Wally finally managed to speak. "I can hear incoming reinforcements."

"No! We must get my notes and journal. It is too valuable." The older woman handed girl to Percy who passed it to surprised Kaldur before running after her. Luckily, they did not have to look too hard. Everything they had was in the third tent. She grabbed their bags and followed the team into Bio-ship that was now parked inside the encampment.

* * *

**Somewhere over the Atlantic Ocean  
September 4th, 22:16**

"Now explain everything from the beginning. Slowly. I will clarify whatever details they won't understand." Percy said to the woman. He took his mask off because there was really no point in hiding his identity and it started to itch.

"My name is Doctor Helena Sandsmark. I am world renown archaeologist, specialized in ancient Greece and Rome. I am also granddaughter of Minerva. Served my time in second cohort." Here Percy gave an explanation on how Camp Jupiter and Camp Half-Blood work. "As I was saying, I specialize in ancient north Mediterranean civilizations. Almost ten years ago, back when I was still young and making my way through the world of science I met a really charming man. I naively believed he was the one. We broke up soon after, but nine months later my daughter Cassie was born. I wanted to find this man, but only later I discovered that this man was in fact lord Jupiter, or rather Zeus." Here, Percy finally explained in details to best of his knowledge how the split personality work with gods. "Like I said, Lord Zeus..."

"No need for the formalities. Ol' Drama queen won't do anything to you here. We are completely safe from them." Percy smiled mischievously.

"Fine. Zeus then explained that as a child of big three, my daughter was in constant danger because of how strong smell she had. He said he couldn't protect her, or we would all experience wrath of Lady Hera." Percy wanted to correct them, but dropped it, not wanting to interrupt again. "I took my daughter to New Rome and lived there for a bit. My mother took care of her when I was traveling with my work. No one knew who her father was. I couldn't reveal it to anyone not only because he was one of the big three, but also because she was born of his Greek aspect. After the second Titan and Giant war were over and camps were united, I hoped that things would settle down." Percy promised to one day tell them about the wars, but they did not have time to write ten books. "Sadly, Fates just lost their favorite toy and were in really bad mood so another great prophecy was spoken. A demigod Daughter of Zeus on the day of her sixteen birthday would bring back the time before Gods. Before you ask, no, I don't know the exact wording. I was too busy trying to run away with young Cassie. I am not a fool. I know how paranoid Zeus is. Everyone knows after what happened to you. Anyway, we've been traveling, hiding from the monsters for weeks. I had some friends that helped me, but in the end there would always be only the two of us: Me and Cassie. One night, we were running through the woods somewhere in Louisiana. A group of monsters attacked the motel we were staying in. I packed my daughter and we run. Somewhere in the middle of the forest one of the monsters caught up with us. Your favorite I might add."

Percy pondered the question before it came to him like a charging bull "Beef hear a.k.a as the Minotaur."

"Exactly. Except you weren't there and Cassie doesn't really know how to fight. I am also more of a strategist. You are the only living person to kill this monster in single combat. Back to the story. He was closing on us and in desperation I prayed to every single god that wasn't Zeus or Hera. Suddenly, there was a loud crash as the earth shook and Minotaur was gone in pile of golden dust. I was saved by Poseidon himself." Percy was so proud of his dad, the only god that actually did something. "He offered me and my daughter a second chance. A travel to world abandoned by gods."

"Just like that?" Artemis asked unconvinced. "I am no expert, but usually Gods do not give people things for free."

Percy wanted to protest and defend his dad, but Doctor Sandsmark stopped him. "She is right. Your father and Hermes actually wanted me to find you in this dimension. Hermes told me to give you this." She pulled an exact replica of the belt Percy wore in his armor except the buckle was made of imperial gold instead of... whatever batman made it. "He said that pockets are enchanted. They contain various things for you to use, including infinite storage of Ambrosia and Nectar, just like your current belt. The whole manual is in one of the compartments. Your father wanted me to tell you that he is proud of you and what you achieved." Percy blushed slightly.

A loud scream interrupted the talk. Cassie was awake and now she was throwing herself in pain. The water was still keeping her from burning, but Percy suspected the problem was inside her. He quickly pulled more ambrosia and gave it to her, but she spit it out. The godly food caught on fire.

"Oh no. We have real problem here. She is overloading with power." Percy explained. Seeing that no one understood it, he explained. "When I first arrived here, my body started to absorb raw energy of my father's domains. I was slowly being overloaded with power like when I ate too much godly food. It would start burning me on the inside..."

"How did you stop the process?" Helena asked with her usual cold voice, but there was clear note of distress.

"I... I was not even aware at that time. When I was in the sea, I felt something pulling me, so I followed it. I found my father's trident and it bonded with me, stabilizing me at the same time. It... I don't know. I think it served as a filter or something to the power. From what I was told gods in our world served as buffer of the power. Because demigods got their powers from them, our bodies are accustomed to specific amount of it. In this world, there is nothing to stop us from drawing directly from the source. It is burning her."

"Then... I don't know! Stabilize her! Do something!" Doctor Sandsmark dropped all illusion of calmness and started screaming.

"I don't know how."

"Then take me to someone who knows!"

Percy wondered for a moment. League had Zatara to deal with problems of magical nature, but this was more of a case of mythology. Diana would be best, but she is a fighter not a wizard. _THEMYSCIRA! "_ Set a course for coordinates I'm sending you." Percy spoke to Megan while frantically pressing buttons on holo-screen. "I need to make a call. Top speed. Nothing must slow us down. Life or possibly lives are at stake. We have no idea what exactly will happen if she overcharge with power." Miss Martian instinctively followed Percy's command. There was this spark in his voice, the way he talked... He was a natural born leader. "How long exactly have you been imprisoned?"

"Less than a week. I had hard time keeping track on time while being held in the cage in dark tent!" Helena screamed at Percy.

"Doesn't matter. In her current stage, she won't survive much longer." Percy stood up from his chair and went to the back of the ship to have some privacy while making a call.

"Diana. This is Percy. I need your help. It's life or death situation with potential of large number of casualties. Meet me at Themyscira ASAP."

"What's going on?" Wonder Woman's voice sounded through the comm.

"I found another demigod from my world. She was imprisoned by Queen Bee. Right now she is getting overcharged by the power. If we don't do something soon, she will die. And with the amount of power that she gathered, I fear she might go nuclear." Percy remembered how people compared gods' true form to hundreds nukes going out at once. If Cassie gathered even small fraction of this power after she released it it would destroy everything in the area.

"I will meet you there. Hurry up." Diana ended the communication and Percy returned to the main deck.

"Can't this thing go any faster?" Helena was screaming at Miss M, which caused Conner to tighten his fist until his knuckles turned white.

"It is already going at top possible speed. I don't have any way of accelerating it further. We will be there in about an hour."

"She might not have an hour! This excess energy is burning her from the inside!"

Kaldur was silently analyzing the whole situation. Finally, he turned to Percy. "Neptune! Your trident. Ocean-master used it to drain the power of Aquaman and other Atlanteans. Maybe you can do the same for Cassie and slow down the process."

Percy summoned his trident, but he wasn't convinced. "I don't know Aqualad. I mean... I never used it this way. I have no idea how."

"Just try. Maybe you'll figure something out."

Percy pointed his trident at Cassie and started thinking about draining her power. Nothing happened. _I need to try a different approach._ He closed his eyes and visualized energy filling the air and flowing through/into young girl as a currents in the sea. He channeled his power through the trident and tried manipulating the currents of energy inside Cassie. It really did feel like controlling the water, but a familiar tug in his gut told him something is happening. Since he arrived in this world, this sensation no longer appeared when he used his power, but apparently now it returned. He opened his eyes to see lightning crackling between the trident and young demigod. With each passing second, Percy felt more and more power. His weapon started to get heavier and hotter. Finally, he was forced to cut the connection.

"Put us underwater. I can propel us using the currents. I need to unload some of this energy." Percy ordered and Miss M followed his command. She trusted him to do the right thing. Somewhere deep in her mind there was this lingering memory of Psimon's dead body. _What if not? What if he doesn't do the right thing in the end?_

Once they submerged, Percy channeled all the gathered energy together with his own to create a new current that would propel them at unimaginable speed. He was pretty sure he just broke some laws of physics, but he didn't care. Cassie needed help and each second could mean the difference between life and death. He was determined to protect her. Somewhere along, he saw a part of himself in her. Just like him, she was haunted by a prophecy hanging over her head. She was child of a big three, which caused every monster in the state she was in to come get her. He pitied her, but at the same time he hated Zeus for his pride and stupidity. How is that this jackass was still the king?

* * *

They arrived on Themyscira with record time. Percy created a bubble of cold water around Cassie after putting breathing mask on her face. The pain caused her to fall unconscious. They were now on the beach not so far from the city. Percy did not want to land inside the city, because the Amazons would shoot them out of the skied before they even got chance to say ' _Hello, we come in Peace_ '. Percy decided to leave other boys to guard the ship and took Artemis, Miss Martian and Doctor Sandsmark with him. And of course Cassie. He tried calling Wonder Woman, but she did not answer. Only the voice mail came, which did nothing but increased Percy's irritation.

After the third time WW did not answer his call Percy decided to screw it all and motioned them to follow him. They all run/flew through the lush green island. Even in the middle of the night there was this untold beauty of the paradise on earth. But none of them had time for this. Percy guided them straight to the city. There was one more person who could help him, but he did not want to try until all other options were out of question. Now seemed like a right time. He dashed toward, careful not to let go of his hold on the bubble. The city gates were closed, but Percy didn't care. Time was running out and he could feel it. The water around Cassie was getting hotter and he could feel energy overloading her. He punched the gigantic gates, but they only shook. Irritated, he punched three more times. A voice could be heard from above.

"Who are you and why are you trying to breach the defenses of Themyscira? Answer now or we will shoot you all before you make a move." Familiar voice of Artemis the Amazon sounded.

"You know me. I am Perseus, son of Poseidon. Now let me in before I level this whole place. Human lives are at stake so don't push me." Percy was really in hurry and couldn't deal with hateful Amazons right now.

Artemis the Amazon actually stuttered, not being able to speak up. She heard of the real power Perseus possessed. He took out all the amazons in single combat and that was without using his powers. Heck. He even took her and Donna, two best amazons at the same time while handicapped. She had no doubt that he would fulfill this threat. "Alright. Open the gates sisters!" Although some other Amazons were reluctant to carry this order, others, who had more oil in their head, opened the gates and let the group inside..

Percy did not wait for the gate to fully open. He slipped with Cassie right behind him as soon as there was wide enough space. The team continued running through beautiful streets of ancient city, still preserved in flawless condition. Doctor Sandsmark and Artemis had to be telekinetically carried by miss M to be able to keep up with Percy. If her daughter's life wasn't at stake, Helena would actually stop and admire every single building. It was one thing to explore ruins, but another to witness a house that was still the same. It felt like she traveled back in time and now could actually witness the lives of normal people. Or as normal as tribe of semi-immortal warrior women can get.

They got to the stairs leading to palace hill. Miss Martian flew up with Artemis and Doctor Sandsmark. Percy just created a hurricane around himself and started raising up with Cassie. He was having troubles with staying in the air and not falling or shake in different direction. This was actually draining him bit by bit. The stress was slowly getting to him. _Hold on in there. We almost arrived._

Finally, they all got to the temple/palace at the top of the hill. Queen Hippolyta was awaiting Percy outside in full battle armor, aided by her personal guard and some priestesses.

"Why are you here, _my lord?_ " The last words were full of venom, but she was powerless. Percy was sent here by the gods, and he was a son of Poseidon. In theory, he had more authority than her, but Amazons would never listen to any male. Also, there was the fact that this boy was able to defeat any other person here in single combat and Diana was no where to be seen.

Percy moved the water bubble toward, showing the Queen and the others a young girl. "This is Cassie. She is the daughter of Zeus." At that the amazons gave a collective grasp. "She came from my world, but she is now being overflooded with power. If we don't do something, she will die, taking good chunk of land with her."

"And you brought her HERE!?" Queen screamed at Percy. "You are endangering the whole island!"

"That doesn't matter, because we will help her. You have the biggest collection of godly artifacts in existence. I'm sure there is something that can help her in there." Percy tried to reassure her, but truth is he was so focused on saving the girl that he did not take into consideration the others. Athena's words rang in his head. _"You will destroy the world to save a friend."_

Hippolyta wanted to argue, but one look at Percy told her that there was no point. Instead, she sighted and led them to the vault in deeper part of the palace. Percy was looking around, awing at the beauty of the Palace which he visited only once before. As it served also as a temple, Amazons forbid him from coming inside. He didn't argue back then, but at that moment he wished he did. If not for how pressing the current matter was, he would stand for hours in front of different mosaics and paintings presenting Olympians.

They arrived before large metal doors with Greek words carved in them. While to Artemis and Megan they meant nothing but a babbling and even Helena couldn't understand the dialect, but Percy was able to decipher it. _Behind this doors lays the treasure of gods. Beware mortals! For those of you who lay eyes on the might for your own gain will suffer the wrath of Olympus._ Standard threat. Queen Hippolyta stopped and turned to the group.

"From now on, only Percy, the young girl and I can go. Rest of you are forbidden from entering."

"You can't expect me to leave my daughter right now" Helena hardly stopped herself from screaming and settled on angry tone.

"I can. No one can enter the vault other than me and children of the three brothers. I am the high priestess of the Gods and their voice in mortal world. Who are you woman to argue with me."

"I am grand-daughter of Athena. There is more ichor in my veins than in you and the rest of the amazons in this room."

Hippolyta was taken aback by this, but she almost instantly regained her composure. "That doesn't concern me. Now if you wish for your daughter to live, you will stop wasting our time." She ignored any further protest. Instead, she turned back to the doors and touched the circle in the middle. It glowed and the doors slowly lowered into the ground. Behind there was dark staircase leading down into the mountain. She pulled a lever on the wall and torches lit the whole thing.

Percy and the Queen went down. Stairs led them to circular room with multiple pedestals. Even without windows, the whole room was lit light it was middle of the day.

"The gods gradually stopped coming down to the mortal world. After my daughter killed Ares, Zeus sent me a message. He asked me to gather all the artifacts that were left after them, as they will never again walk among mortals. My daughter collected as many as she could before returning them all here. We had no idea how many artifacts were left..." She was interrupted by Percy.

"It's not the best time for history lesson. I need something of Zeus. For me, it was the trident that did the magic. "

"We don't have any artifacts left after Lord Zeus himself... He never let his lightning out of his hand and he gave Aegis to Athena. Maybe..."

"I am here." It was the sound of Diana coming inside. "I didn't expect you to wait for me near the ship, but almost punching the gates out is an overkill."

"A girl is dying. Forgive me that I knocked a little bit too hard. Not important now. Do you have anything connected to Zeus to stabilize her?" Percy was happy to see Diana. She grew on him like an older cousin. Kinda like Thalia. Both were immortals, independent, feminist, brave and quite pretty.

"Hm... Only thing left of Zeus in this World is... Me! As far as I know I am the only daughter of Zeus living here and my father keeps his things close to him."

"You remember my first quest, right?" Percy joked. His mind was overworking itself trying to figure new solution. "That's it! how does they say it. EUREKA!" Seeing their puzzled glare, he elaborated. "Diana. You can serve as the filter. You were born in this dimension, so you are accustomed to extra amount of power. If we bind Cassie to you, she will safely draw the strength through you. It will let you regulate how much she can access."

Hippolyta wanted to protest, but Wonder Woman gave her no chance. "I agree. But how are we gonna go it?"

Percy summoned his trident and closed his eyes. He extended his senses and soon he sensed energy flowing through this room. Most of it was entering Cassie, but some was going into Diana. He focused on the 'currents' entering young demigoddess. He manipulated them and pulled some away, moving them through Wonder Woman, letting them pass her and only then enter the girl. One by one, the energy lines were rearranged. Then, Percy pulled excess energy from Cassie. He opened his eyes to see the lightning cracking at the end of his trident. The whole weapon was hot and shined with golden light.

"Here! Put this energy into this." Queen shouted as she tossed him a set of bracelets. Percy did as ordered, not having time to argue. After everything was done, he fell on one knee. This whole 'ritual' tired him. He slowly put Cassie on the ground and dispersed the water. Diana was still standing, but the aura of power around her changed. While before it was similar to Jason's back at his home, now it was a bit stronger. Not much, but still. It was like a toy just received new batteries.

"I-Is Cassie all right?" Percy tried to stand up, but he almost fell again from exhaustion. He had to support himself on his trident. Hippolyta walked over to her and checked her status.

"She will be alright." Queen picked her up and carried her bridal style "I will take her to some bed. You two should rest as well."


	6. Assassins: part 1

"Guys. You've got to see this." Wally screamed at the group that was returning from Royal Palace. Doctor Sandsmark decided that for the time being she and her daughter will stay on the island. Queen did not have any problem with it. Amazons were happy to accept another warrior among them. Diana also stayed to make sure that Cassie will be alright.

"What is it Wallman?" Artemis asked.

"Just hurry up."

The group went inside the Bio-ship. A big holographic screen displayed Queen Bee at the press conference in front of her palace.

" _Last night a group of american so-called heroes attacked Bialya. They crossed the border with Qurac and destroyed science outpost, killing the lead scientist_ _Simon Jones."_ A video appeared on screen next to her. It showed Neptune throwing trident at Psimon like it really happened, but there were some major differences. For example the cages behind them were empty and there was no Doctor Sandsmark or Helena on the picture. Also, Psimon wore a lab coat and not his usual attire. He was running from Neptune when he was pierced with the trident. " _As you've all seen, this is what Justice League really is: a group of murderers that have no respect for wishes of free nations of this world. Bialya was never informed nor we agreed for them to enter out sovereign territory. I will demand compensation and for those perpetrators to stand trial."_ Then, the screen showed rest of the team minus Aqualad, wreaking havoc among Bialyan soldiers.

"We are so screwed"

* * *

**Mount Justice**  
**September 5th, 10:16**

"Let me get this straight. You were supposed to run a silent recon mission. Instead, you destroyed a military encampment, devastated more than a dozen tanks and sent what qualifies as small army to the hospital." Percy wanted to protest but Batman gave him no chance. "And you. You killed a man."

"I saved Doctor Sandsmark." Percy protested.

"That doesn't change anything." Batman tried to shut him down. Not wanting to deal with angry Bat, rest of the team took a step back, but Percy remained unaffected. On the contrary. He stepped toward so he was facing him eye to eye.

"I think it does. If I had to choose between doing what I did and saving innocent life, I would do it again."

"I don't know how it's done where you come from, _Perseus,_ but here we don't execute villains."

This crossed the line for Percy. He had to deal with Bat since the day he arrived. And none of the encounters were pleasant.

_Flashback_

_"I am Percy Jackson and I am demigod, son of Poseidon." He extended his hand toward Batman, but vigilante rejected it._

_"I will be watching you closely. For now, let's discuss the details."_

_"Ok then... Is he always like that?" Percy asked, looking at Diana. She silently nodded. "Anyway. May I get my stuff back? It..."_

_"No." Batman cut him._

_"Alright." Percy smiled. "I tried nicely." Before Batman reacted, Percy extended his hand and with small shimmer his trident appeared. This earned a glare from Batman and surprised faces from the rest of the league. Diana chuckled. She knew her 'cousin' for only few hours and already she liked him._

_"Don't try to act so smart. You are still under league custody until we decided what to do with you." Batman sounded irritated._

_"Let me think about it... Nope. I told you already. I agree to your 'offer' to become a hero. But I will do it on my terms."_

_"Your terms? You are in no position to negotiate."_

_"Actually, he is." Superman joined the discussion. "Percy here showed good faith already. He also saved good chunk of Poseidonis."_

_"After destroying it first." Batman cut Supes' out._

_"Actaully," Aquaman chimed in, "We learned that this was a bomb and not his powers. I suspect that Ocean-master was behind it."_

_"That doesn't change anything. Kid is loose cannon. We can't just let him go."_

_"Then let me train him." Wonder Woman volunteered, much to everyone's surprise. "I will train him and teach him about this world." Looking at Percy, she added. "That is if you agree."_

_"Cool with me." Was all response she received._

_"Fine, but I will still keep an eye on him."_

_"One more thing Percy. What is your full name. You can't exactly expect us to believe it's Percy." Green Arrow asked._

_"Didn't Bat show you my documents? I want them back too by the way. My name is Perseus. Perseus 'Achilles' Jackson. The middle name is another joke from the gods."_

_End_ _Flashback_

"You are right. You don't execute villains. And neither do I. But when needed, I can do what must be done." Batman wanted to say something, but Percy sent him his worst wolf-stare yet. "Now you shut up and listen Rich Boy. You were born with silver spoon in your hands. Yes, you might have lost your parents, but that is the only tragedy in your life. Guess what? Half of my friends lost one of their parents while the other completely ignored them." Batman was still in too much shock at the teen's outburst to actually react. Rest of the team found both too scary to try and intervene. Percy continued. "Since I was twelve my life was nothing but a battle. I did not choose this life like you did. I was forced into it because of who I was. I did not want to kill, I still don't. It isn't pleasure for me, it's necessity. This is not some perfect world. You are a fool if you believe that you can save everyone. Sooner or later someone will die. The question is, who will it be?"

Batman was now beyond furious. This impertinent kid not only showed no remorse after killing, but dared to defend his stand. "Killing is killing, no matter the circumstances." Bat wanted to continue, but yet again he was interrupted by Percy.

"Oh really? Go tell that to countless war veterans that fought to defend your country while you were doing what exactly? Jumping from the roofs and beating some muggers. You live in a bubble. Not wanting to see the truth, you created this perfect illusion for yourself. Money and expensive gadgets can't solve all the problems. I fought in two wars. You want to know how it is? I can tell you how it is. It's kill or be killed. One moment of hesitation and your friend is dead. One mistake and your friend is dead. One wrong move and you are dead." The earth started to shake with his words. "War is constant fight for survival. You can't defeat everyone by just knocking them out, because they will return stronger. I fought monsters half my life. I killed every single creature in Greek mythology. Starting with Minotaur ending with Gaia herself. If I just 'knocked them out', my world would now be layered with dead bodies and crumbled civilization. And I would be somewhere along this bodies. Tell me Bruce. Do you honestly believe that death of everyone would be better than one death? Death of two parents better than death of one mugger?" Percy was furious. This Batman was living in some bubble. If not broken, it would cost lives of countless others. It could even cost lives of his friends in the team because he wasn't going to do what needs to be done.

The last sentence did it for bat. "You are out. I don't want to see you anywhere near the team anymore."

Earth shook one last time before it stopped. "Fine. Have it your way. But remember. This isn't over _Bruce._ " With that, Percy walked away. Some like Kaldur and Artemis wanted to chase after him, but rest stopped them.

"Now. I want full mission report by tomorrow. Right now League will need to deal with the fallout of your actions." With that, Batman walked into Zeta tube and disappeared in flash of bright light.

* * *

**Undisclosed location**  
**September 5th, 11:34**

"Our trap worked perfectly." Queen Bee started the meeting.

"Yes. They never expected us to place cameras all over the area." Luthor smiled. "But sadly, it wasn't enough. Psimon failed. With testimony from Doctor Sandsmark they managed to question the 'good intention' of the science outpost enough to force us to drop the case before they start investigating."

"There is also the problem of this new hero, Neptune." Manta displayed the image of Percy using tank as a Frisbee. "I say we deal with him."

"Agreed, but we shouldn't waste the scorpion venom yet. Research proved it to be more potent than we expected. It can kill full-blooded kryptonian in just hours and right now we did not find any antidote." Lex explained.

"For now, let's initiate standard protocols. Ten million shoud be enough, right Great One?" Vandal ended the discussion.

"Of course. I will see to it."

"Good. Let the hunt begin."

* * *

**Long Island**  
**September 5th, 13:14**

Percy sat on the half-blood hill overseeing empty valley. After Batman kicked him out, he wanted to have some peace so he jumped into the sea and willed currents to take him away. He had no set destination, but somehow he ended up here. For so long camp half-blood was his home, a place where he was safe and could be himself. Only that this world did not have such place. He hoped that The Justice League would be this place. Later, the Team replaced it for some time. But it didn't last long enough. This world was very different from his. Enemies were smarter, more public. They manipulated masses and used treachery and intrigue to fight. It wasn't really his style. Percy was a warrior, not politician. His carrier as a Praetor lasted barely a week. Half-way through he wanted to punch the paperwork.

To distract himself, Percy took his computer, now charged and set, and started learning to program and code. This is one of the skills that he still had to master. While back in his world this abilities were not only not needed but straight up dangerous, here it was necessity. This world was so much more advance. _Or maybe I just lived under the rock back home..._ Percy set himself a bank account in Swiss bank (the kind that doesn't ask questions) and wired the money from his 'Mercury Bank' card. Just like that, Percy became billionaire. For all the bad gods did, they at least made sure he was comfortable in this new world. Before he did not need any of this done, because first there was Themyscira, then the Team. But now he was on his own. Batman made it clear that he wasn't wanted. Of course this 'payment' would attract attention of the authorities, but he didn't care at the moment.

Just then, Percy sensed someone closing on him. Someone familiar. In fraction of seconds he summoned his trident and blocked all the incoming darts.

"You again? I am in no mood for battle right now so please leave me alone." Percy said looking directly where the attacker tried to hide. Key word tried.

"What can I say? I like challenges." With that Cheshire jumped at Percy throwing some Kunai. Of course he blocked the daggers and caught her two sai mid-air with his trident. He used her momentum and the grip he had on her blades to throw her over his head and push her into the ground. With small twist he threw both knifes away and left her defenseless. Pushing the trident to her chest, Percy made sure she couldn't escape binding her to the ground with water from his gauntlet and freezing it. "Now talk. Who are you and why are you still trying to kill me?"

"Aren't you a curious one?" The assassin smiled behind the mask. "And a handsome at that. Mrau" Percy pressed the trident and sent her his wolf stare. "Alright, but you are no fun right now."

"I am not in a mood."

"Whatever you say. Anyway, there is a bounty on your head. Whole ten million. Apparently someones feels threatened by your good looks." Cheshire said with her mocking voice.

"How did you find me."

"Well, pretty boys always attracted me." After feeling the pointy end of Percy's weapon she relented. "Fine. I came here to look for some clues. I did not expect to actually find you. When I saw you, I thought it is my lucky day. And looks like it still can be..."

Percy didn't try to understand what she meant. His gut told him to dodge and so he did. At that moment a bullet came where his head was less than a second ago. He turned and blocked another few shots with his trident. One of the bullets passed through his blockade, but luckily it jumped off his chest armor. A man wearing black and orange armor walked out of the forest with automatic sniper rifle. He tried shooting few more timed, but Percy could easily deflect all attacks. The new assassin looked at Cheshire bound to the ground and Neptune could swear he heard a chuckle under the mask.

"So I see you already dealt with my colleague. Good. That means she won't interrupt me." Deathstroke dropped the sniper rifle and drew his sword. He jumped at Percy, but his attack was stopped by the trident. He tried to attack few more times, but every attack was either blocked or deflected. Finally, the assassin thought he saw an opening and attacked from the left, but Percy was expecting it. He blocked the strike with top of his weapon and used the shaft to undercut Deathstroke. Of course assassin jumped over the shaft, but by doing so he fell off balance and gave Neptune chance to switch to offensive. Percy proceeded with mixture of jabs and slashes, keeping the enemy at bay. The range advantage made the fight much easier compared to when he fought using Riptide. Of course he still had the faithful blade, but Poseidon's trident was much more versatile and it was practically made to suit Percy. It changed in size after he summoned it for the first time and the shaft was almost like made for his hands.

"Not bad kid. I must say I'm impressed. You clearly have experience. But not enough!" Deathstroke jumped back, throwing smoke bomb at Percy mid-air.

Initially, Percy started coughing as the smoke got into his lungs, but he regained composure in time to block an attack from deathstroke. He then kicked the assailant away and run the other way to get visual. Once back on the hill, Percy saw only broken, half-melted remains of the bindings he made for Cheshire. She disappeared... Like a Cheshire cat. _And I thought it was just the mask._ Neptune unfroze the water and gathered it back into his gauntlets. Second assassin did not give up so easily. Percy blocked the strike, but he was distracted. Deathstroke capitalized on this and managed to disarm Percy, sending the Trident away. Now he was unarmed against one of the deadliest swordsman on earth. Assassin went for one strong overhead chop, but Neptune caught the blade in both hands. Then, he pressed more and they both heard the crack. Then, sword shattered under pressure. Assassin looked dumbfound on the grip and what was left of the sword.

"Not enough huh? Face it. You won't beat me. Go away now and I will leave you to it. I am really not in the mood right now, so..." Percy never finished. Deathstroke drew his second blade and jumped at Percy. This time, he pulled riptide and went for a counter. He caught the blade into his sword's guard and with a flick of his wrist sent it away. Then, before Deathstroke had time to comprehend what happened, Percy hit him in the head hard and sent him unconscious.

Percy gathered his things and left for the river. He wanted to jump and swim away, but before he got a chance, a javelin landed in front of him and exploded.

"Ugh. What a guy has to do to have some time alone..." Percy grumbled before standing up and summoning his trident. "Seriously. I took down two others. What makes you think you have any chance?"

Another javelin was thrown at Percy, but he caught it in the prongs of his weapon and with spin sent it back to the sender. Out of the woods jumped the man wearing hockey mask and football armor. "You ignorant brat. I am Sportsmaster. I already took down your whole team before."

"Yeah? Well I am Neptune. One advice man. Never fight me near the water." Percy was getting tired with constant attacks. One was a nice practice. Two was actually something. Three was irritating. He focused on the water in the river and made a large chunk of it fly up and directly at 'Sportsmaster' or whoever this assassin was. He tried to dodge, but tsunami covered him all. Percy sized the moment and froze it all with him inside. Finally dealing with the assassin, he jumped into the water and swam away.

* * *

Percy decided to go to Washington DC. He remembered about League's safe house in every major town. New York was too close and there was too big chance of being followed. He contemplated contacting Diana or the Team, but Batman's words rang in his head. _"You are out!"_. If he did not want him, he won't beg. It's not like he needed them. Sure, fighting solo is more dangerous, but at least he knows who can be trusted. The look on the teams faces. Robin. Wally. Superboy. Miss Martian. They all resented him for who he was. For what he did. They feared him for what he might become. At least Aqualad and Artemis tried to stop him. Percy was grateful, even if the effort was futile. He wouldn't stay if not wanted. After all it was the Justice League who forced him into the 'hero' thing. But he can be hero just as well without them. There are many superheroes that aren't in the league and still do good. Or he could abandon this life completely. There wasn't anything forcing him to be hero really. _Except my stupid savior complex._

Ignoring the thought, Percy changed his direction last minute, deciding to instead go to Luthor plaza hotel. Some luxury would be appreciated. Percy changed into his blue hooded jacked and well-worn jeans. over his super-suit. He put the mask and the gauntlets inside his bag and sent trident away. He wasn't sure where it went, but it was safe from anyone who would try to grab it. It was his. The last gift from his father. Well semi-last, because there was still the belt, but Percy left it in the Bio-ship with most of his stuff. Only the bag he called and his ever-returning wallet were safe. Good thing he kept his laptop inside the bag.

After registering at the hotel (Percy got himself all-inclusive king's suite), he went up to rest for a bit. Later that day he would have to go do some shopping and figure out what to do next. He couldn't stay here for long. Not when there was a bounty on his head. His whole life he run, hid from monsters. He came to this world to escape the life, but it was forced onto him. Now he was a public person, but he was not a hero. Not yet. He tried league's way, but Batman kicked him out. Now it was time to forge his own way. Time for Neptune be his own hero. Not being ready to go out in the open, Percy bough a pair of swim trunks in hotel store and got to the swimming pool. It was gigantic, accustomed to fit at least fifty people. One of the walls was made of glass and gave beautiful sight on the city. Percy sat underwater and watched as lives of people went. After good hour he spotted some flash of light one one of the rooftops. It attracted his attention, sparking his combat instincts, but he ignored. Suddenly, a bullet pierced the glass and hit him square in the chest. It would have pierced the heart, but it flattened on Percy's skin. _Huh? I am bulletproof?_ He did not have time to capitalize on this, because glass wall broke and water poured out. He tried to stop it, but he was too late. It pulled him outside and now it was free fall from thirty third floor is not exactly the most pleasant. He tried creating hurricane and lifting himself, but it didn't work. He also couldn't summon his trident. _Great. Suddenly all my powers are out._

Not having many other options, he managed to pull closer to the tower and push himself away. This gave him enough power to crash into another building. It all happened in a matter of seconds to any spectators. Percy quickly jumped up on his feet and looked around. The office he landed in was rather large, suggesting it belonged to someone influential. _Oh well. Hope he had this place insured._ Percy analyzed his surrounding, looking for some weapon. He opened the desk drawer and found a gun and two spare ammo clips. _Wow. Someone doesn't trust security._ He grabbed the gun and put the spare ammo clip into his trunks to make sure he won't run out so easily. Percy checked the room for some spare cloth, but only found a woman's bra. Definitely not something he wanted to wear while being hunted by group of contract killers. Police wouldn't come fast enough so he had to save himself.

Percy walked out of the office and into the hallway. He could in theory try and search some other office. It was Sunday and nobody was home, but he abandoned the plan immediately as he caught the sound of footstep. He jumped into closest room and locked the door. He aimed the gun at the leg of whoever would come. Despite what Batman believed, Percy was determined not to kill mortals unless absolute necessity. One could argue that when someone tries to kill you it is necessity, but Percy was used to that. Instead, he wanted to incapacitate them and get more info on who put the contract. The steps were being louder and louder. Percy steadied his breath and prepared. The doors suddenly opened and Percy shoot.

"Oh fuck. Seriously sweety?" Cheshire cursed at Percy. "Didn't your mom teach you not to shoot at women? I hoped that maybe at least your father taught you not to shoot at beautiful women." She finished seductively.

"Girl..." Percy moaned. "What I need to do to get rid of you?"

Cheshire tried to move closer, but she only fell back and cursed. She could feel the bone in her leg broken. "Oh? You don't want me? Such a shame. You are really handsome." She tried to touch his abs, but he took a step back.

"Yeah sorry nope. Not really my type. You know the white face, this whiskers..." He joked before taking off her mask. This time, electroshock didn't work on him or didn't affect him. "Now better. Now tell me how did you find me so fast?"

"Easy. I slipped tracking device into your bag while you were busy fighting Deathstroke. I saw you jump off the window and into this building so I slipped in."

"And the man who destroyed my window? And took away my control over water?" Percy continued interrogation

Cheshire was reluctant to tell him anything more, but seeing that she had no way of running with broken leg and he had a gun, she relented. "That would be Anatoli Knyazev, KGBeast. He is dangerous assassin. As for how he blocked your powers... There is a toxin harvested from deep sea flowers that can stop Atlantean magic. I guess yours is similar enough. It works on contact so he probably laced a bullet with it. Effects last for anywhere between two hours and few days. Now please stop waving this gun like a madman or you might accidentally shoot yourself and ruin your pretty face. It would be a shame."

"You wanted to kill me few minutes ago. Am I that good looking?" Percy joked, but stopped waving the gun. Cheshire wanted to give him some witty comeback, but a heavy steps one the level above them silenced them both. Percy silently moved to the doors. He wanted to run away and leave Cheshire to herself, but his stupid consciousness did not let him. "Ugh. Cursed me. Fine." He turned back to the assassin. "Right now we are both in tough spot. You have no chance of escaping and I am in no place to battle. I can't even summon my weapon. We need each other. I offer an alliance." Seeing her unconvinced, Percy wanted to leave, but another thought came to his mind. "You accept contracts, right? What if I offered you double the bounty on my head to help keep me alive?" This sparked Cheshire interest.

"Yeah. There is no way you have that kind of money. Good looks can't get you that far."

Percy only smiled. "You noticed where I was staying? I will give you a clue: it was top floor."

"Fine. I accept the contract. Now let's move before this moron realizes he is on the wrong level." Right on cue the ceiling shook and some paint fell down on them.

"I think he just did." Percy picked Cheshire bridal style and run outside he office they spent last few minutes. They got to the main area of the office. Long lanes of boxes where during weekdays low-level workers did their job. Percy with Cheshire between them and started running. He wanted to make his way toward the staircase. They were already half way through when behind them there sounded a large _THUD_! followed by loud steps.

"Come out tovarishch. I will end you quickly" A loud voice, modified by some tech sounded through the place. "I admit. You Atlanteans are tough. You deserve a quick and painless death."

Of course Percy didn't listen. He sneaked with Cheshire between the cabins, moving only when he was sure that KGBeast was not seeing him. To his relief, his life sense still worked. _I wonder_. Percy frantically looked around to find dark enough shadow in the box he was in. The darkness under the desk was not enough. An idea came to him.

"I have an idea how to get us out of here. It might work, but be ready for a fight." He whispered to Cheshire. She wanted to protest, but he didn't give her chance. He lit the table lamp and jumped under the desk. Of course the whisper and light got Anatoli's attention. He was already wreaking through the boxes to shorten the distance. Percy focused on the shadow inside and imagined himself and Cheshire melting into it. Slowly, the world around him darkened and distanced from him. Cheshire wanted to give him some comment about risking her life on something that 'might' work, but found herself unable to utter any words. Percy was feeling all the juice getting out of him. He searched for other shadow strong enough to get them. Subconsciously, he could feel incoming assassin. Finally, he found shade large enough to travel to few levels below in dark closet. He was about to travel there when an explosion lightened the whole box. He sent Cheshire down, but he was caught mid-way. It expelled him right in front of the large barrel. Percy looked up to see beefy armored man. What immediately got his attention was the fact that the man had a large gun mounted instead of a hand.

"So. Malen'kaya rybka nakonets-to vyshla iz ukrytiya." He wanted to shoot him then and there, but Percy still had his gun. It was a matter of seconds. _Either I do something, or my mind will be being collected for next few months._ He did not have chance to aim the gun high enough to hit head or arm, but well-aimed bullet to assassin's private area can save life even better. KGBeast gave a series of multiple colorful curses while falling on the ground. Armor stopped the bullet from ripping his manhood to shreds, but there was now a dent and Percy was sure this villain wouldn't be able to walk for some time. Percy got up and with one swift kick sent the enemy unconscious. Only then Percy had a chance to give him a better look. tight fitting armor protected chest, legs and head, leaving the shoulders and arms completely revealed. Percy looked at gun that was starting right below his elbow. It looked rude, but quite advanced at the same time. Efficiency over looks. Percy shook his head before stepping at it and putting good chunk of his strength to make sure it was completely wreaked. Not even Leo would be able to repair it without replacing ninety percent of parts. Smiling at his work, Percy tried walking away, but exhaustion got to him. Shadow travel consumed almost all his energy reserves. He tried to walk away and escape, but fell. Last thing he saw before the lights went out was that some woman wearing red jacket with pretty revealing window over her chest area.

* * *

He woke up to see the rooftop of the building he was in. The broken window in the hotel next door gave it away. _Where is the police when you need them? It's the middle of the day and no one is interested in shooting in the hotel and destroyed office?_ He was tied with largest chain he saw to this day. Memory of what happened slowly returned to him. Percy could still feel his water powers absent. He was still in his briefs, but now his gun and ammo clips were absent.

"You finally awake. Good. I was starting to loose my patience. Master said that you might yet be of use to us." Percy tried turning his head and see the woman, but he couldn't. No matter which side he rotated his head, she was still in his blind spot.

"It's impolite to talk to people without facing them." Percy joked while he tried to figure out a way. Suddenly, his chains fell down and he realized he is free. Immediately he jumped on his feet and turned around, ready to face another assassin. She was there. Another young woman, probably in her early twenties. Like he remembered, she wore red jacket with pretty revealing window over her chest area. She also had black, well-fit trousers and a belt with yellow ring acting as a buckle. In her hands were two swords somehow similar in design to riptide. Her hair was chopped short and uneven and Percy suspected that she cut it herself using the sword she was holding. She tossed him one blade and nodded for him to take it.

"I will make this honorable for you. You will have a chance to die in battle."

"Yeah... well any other day I would accept an offer from such a beautiful lady to dance a bit, but there is no music and I am in my underwear. It would send a wrong vibe. You get me?" Percy mocked, but he picked the blade. It felt strange in his hand. Only one side was sharpened, while the other was dull. Definitely not best for his style. "Do you have any other weapon? This one is not really my style." Lady Shiva was slowly getting irritated with this insolent teen. Somehow he didn't seem at all scared by the fact that she was about to kill him. Either that or he was confident in his victory. She remained silence, not letting him see the irritation. Percy shrugged and tried summoning his bag. To his ultimate joy, it came. He dropped the sword and immediately pulled his belt and put it on. Shiva looked surprised on the whole ordeal. She decided that this was getting out of hand. She jumped at Percy, who at the moment was unarmed, but he blocked the attack with different sword with leaf-shaped blade.

Percy put the bag down and got into stance. Both he and Shiva were not facing each other. Honestly, Percy hoped he would get to eat some ambrosia and maybe regain his strength, but no avail. Both fighters attacked at the same time. When they blades met, it sparked before Percy managed to overpower her and push her back. She gracefully landed and adjusted her strategy. Seeing that full frontal assault will put her in disadvantage, she instead opted for series of quick, vicious strikes that were hard to dodge. If at least one of the precise attacks landed, Lady Shiva would likely win the battle or at least cut some of Percy's muscles taking out of the equation hand, leg or head. To her complete surprise, he not only blocked the initial few attacks but also got her out of balance, regaining the upper hand. He then went for one swift slash that. He expected her to dodge to his left, giving him an option to then use his other hand to send her unconscious or at least daze her long enough for another attack to connect, but instead she side-stepped right, almost walking into his blade before cutting his bare shoulder. Blood started slowly pouring out and he realized that she was actually very skilled. Many would call this move pure luck, but for Percy's trained swordsman eye it was obvious that this was carefully planned and perfectly executed strategy. He backed a bit to get some distance before suddenly lunging toward.

Shiva hoped that the battle would end quickly. Deathstroke was great assassin, but he was nowhere near her level. After hearing about his failure, she wanted to test this boy. Someone who attracted the attention of Great Ra's al'ghoul sure was a worthy opponent. Yet, she did not expect this level of skill from someone so young. She coated the bullets used by KGBeast to poison him and make sure 'neptune' couldn't use his magic. The dumb brute would hope that single shot would end someone so strong. Of course the poison apparently did not fully work as he was now fighting with some magic blade, but at least they were on more or less even ground.

Percy clashed his blade with Shiva. She expected him to repeat the move he used previously, sending her backward so she prepared to cushion it, but instead he locked their blades by the guard and with some weird move he sent her sword away. This didn't surprise her enough. With incredible speed she jumped back, using Percy's face as a launch-pad and kicking him hard. He was sent two steps back and it give her chance to grab the second sword that he dropped. Percy recovered last moment only to block another series of vicious strikes. He finally saw an opening and jumped in, but he created mirroring opening. They both attacked at the same time, leaving a quite nasty scar on their respective right upper part of the torso. Lady Shiva now had a tear in her jacket.

"Well, now I see the advantage of fighting mostly naked. At least my clothes are safe." Percy mocked. The assassin kept her cool, but she was analyzing this boy. His style was very chaotic, unlike anything she ever saw. It was a natural mixture of several different schools. Some techniques like this disarming move she never seen before. Like her, he was impossible to read, only difference was she practiced for years to show no emotions or body language indicating her moves, while he did exact opposite. He sent conflicting signals and distracted his opponent with talking.

"At least I had some modesty not to show up in just the underwear." Shiva played the role of irritated cold assassin. She needed him to get comfortable, give him illusion of control over the battlefield. Percy acted like mature person and stuck his tongue out. This actually irritated Shiva. "Stupid boy. How dare you mock me?!"

She lunged at him, but unknowingly she fell right into the trap. At first he was prepared to block like she expected him to, but with speed that might rival that of Captain Marvel, Percy side-stepped the last moment and let her fall. Not able to stop now, she did next best thing: cushioned the fall and got on her feet. When she was back in position she found herself with cold bronze blade at her neck. She could feel the metal pressing into her. With one wrong move she could have her trachea cut, which would have led to painful death by suffocation. Reluctantly, she dropped her sword. Percy was smart enough to stand on the opposite side of the hand she kept her blade, making it impossible to make any move.

"Congratulation. You won. I am impressed. For sure our paths will cross again." With that, Shiva threw three small smoke pellets. When the cloud finally dispersed, Percy found himself alone on the roof.

* * *

He walked down to see a packing movie team. _Smart. Make it all into action movie No one will suspect it is for real._ First, he went to get Cheshire, but she was long gone. Apparently the nickname had a reflection in reality. He walked back into the hotel. Receptionist stopped him.

"What is the title of the movie you are acting called sir?" Percy could swear she was looking nowhere near his face.

"Blue harvest" He quickly answered before disappearing in the elevator.

Tired beyond imagination he went into his apartment. Of course he already popped few squares of ambrosia, but it was more of mental stress thingy. His brain worked in overdrive mode for almost half a day. He was constantly pumped with adrenaline and now that it all got out, he was feeling the pain. Tomorrow probably he will feel the muscles, but for now he just wanted to take a cold shower and hit the bed. He dropped the bag on the coach in living room and wanted to undress, but his life sense picked another person in the room. In matter of seconds, Percy was on the behind the flipped over table. It wouldn't serve as too much of a protection, but at least hid his exact location.

"There is no need for such violent actions Mr. Jackson. I only came here to personally apologize for any trouble you might have encountered during 'filming' today."

Percy needed no introduction from the trespasser. Well, technically it wasn't trespassing if you owned the building. "Luthor. Cut the play. I am sure you know who I am and I as hell know who you are."

"Oh! I am flattered Mr. Jackson. Please take a seat. I am sure it will be more pleasant for both of us to talk like civilized people." Lex coated his words with sugar, but Percy sensed that he was actually honest.

"Fine." He took a sit on the other armchair. "Now. What do you wan't to talk about. Really." For now, Percy decided to act like cold professional. It might work better with Luthor.

"As you wish. It didn't escape my attention that you Mr. Jackson became billionaire out of nowhere..."

"Take in account that today I already faced five of some of the deadliest assassin in the world. Let's play open cards Luthor. I read the file Justice League has on you. I know you are nowhere as clean as you act to be."

"Fine. I know you aren't really from this world." This was a gamble. Lex could break the bank if he played it right. _O_ _r earn another superhuman enemy. "_ I also know that for some time you acted as a superhero named 'Neptune'. From a convincing source I learned that you were kicked out of Justice League Side-kick squad and that there is large bounty on your head. Did I miss anything?"

"Probably that I attracted attention of every federal agency in the world by creating an account in Swiss bank using public network, only to seconds later transfer billions of Dollars." Percy gave a sarcastic comment, but his face remained cold. It took a lot of strength to keep up with the appearance.

"I wouldn't worry about that. I made sure that it wasn't suspicious. After all, you were owner of Triton Security prior this morning when I bought the company from you. Quite a large company providing safety systems for luxurious clients all around the world. After your father passed away and you were of age, you decided that it's better to sell it and live in fortune old pop made for you." Luthor gave him a wide grin. Similar to Percy's mischievous grin, but it was more evil. Some people would be scarred by it, but he didn't even shrug. One of the ups of going through two wars was that he was hardly scared by anything now.

"So you sized the opportunity and got yourself new shell company?"

"Yes and No. We both gained on this, so why worry?" He pulled a small device from his pocket. It took Percy few seconds to realize it is actually a mobile phone. It was thinner and lighter than he ever seen before. "This is another gift for my fellow billionaire. In this mobile phone there is long list of useful contacts. From trusted real estate agent to a good tailor to several companies that can increase your wealth even more."

Percy nodded unconvinced. He reluctantly took the phone. "And why are you so kind to me Luthor. You never do anything if this doesn't benefit you."

"Let's just say that I am looking for a friend."

"I've looked two different devils in the face. I must say Luthor, none were as convincing as you. I will keep your gifts, but I will not be a pawn in your game." Percy looked Luthor in the eyes and gave him toned down version of the wolf stare. Just like he expected, the rich guy flinched and collapsed deeper into his armchair. He quickly regained his composure, but Percy knew that he won this set.

"I perceive you more of a knight. Very chaotic, but extremely useful. Anyway. It's a tough world. Better to have friends in high places."

"Believe me Luthor. My friends are higher than your's could ever get. Now excuse me. I planned on taking a shower and I'm sorry to say that, but you are nowhere near my type. I think it's the hair." Percy dropped the illusion and returned to his sarcastic self. He tried hard, but he just couldn't resist. Luthor stood up and murmured something like 'nice day' before leaving the apartment.


	7. Assassins: Part 2

**Watchtower  
September 5th, 22:16**

Whole league gathered. Every member was present in person. They've already managed to deal with main fallout of the covert operation. Doctor's Sandsmark testimony was huge help and also caused in-detail investigation of Bialya by the UN. As of now, there was another problem: Neptune. This matter caused way more stir. After reading the raport on the whole event, League divided into two camps. One supported his actions and stood up for him. The other agreed with Batman and stated that killing is wrong no matter what. Previous meeting ended prematurely when they were called to natural crisis on Cuba. Now that this was all sorted, they could return to their debate.

"This is outrageous. He _saved_ that woman!" John Stuart protested. "We cannot punish him for stopping execution."

"He killed Psimon. That's not how it works and you know it. He crossed the line." Superman protested.

"And so did I back in my army days." Protested Captain Atom.

"That was different. You had no choice. He could do something." Batman countered.

"He acted on instincts. You know his history. He is war veteran. He had to kill to survive. He fought for his life for six years." Wonder Woman justified.

"Exactly our point." Flash interrupted her. "He is not fit to be a hero."

"Let me finish. He is trained to kill, but he only resorts to it as last solution, when he knows that everything else is futile." Diana ended.

"That is not excuse. John is also trained soldier, but he don't kill." Captain marvel interjected.

"It's been years since I left the military. He came here straight after war. After I returned I had rehabilitation, I had help. What did we really give him? More military training, and then sent him on mission. It was wrong. We made a mistake. We pushed him into this life, only to withdraw our support. He is now alone God knows where."

"It was his choice to become a hero." Batman said in emotionless voice. Deep down he felt some regret, but he wouldn't admit it. He was still right in his mind. Percy crossed the line and instead of apologizing or showing remorse, he defended his actions.

"Oh really?" Aquaman sent Bat an irritated glare. "Forgive me, but I disagree. He did not look for trouble. We brought him to public attention and placed a target on his back. If we let him go, he would settle down and live a simple life. And even after we captured him, _you_ didn't give him any real choice. You practically coerced him into fighting _your_ battle. He wanted to join the league. He aspired to be like us. Instead, you put him into your 'secret team'." Aquaman raged at batman. Everyone (including himself) were surprised by this. Orin was actually one of three people who knew fully well about Percy's past (other two being Batman and Wonder Woman). At first he thought of him as some weirdo, then as a pretender to his throne, but after he learned full story he felt sympathy toward the kid. His visit in Atlantis only confirmed it. He didn't want spotlight. He did what was right and cared for people. During the attack he rushed head on to save others. Percy was a hero like no other in this world.

Batman wanted to say something, but decided to stay silent. Instead, Hawkwoman spoke. "What happened can't unhappen. We should focus on what to do next. Right now he is missing and we have no idea where to look for him."

Green Arrow rose his hand. "Actually, I found something on him on dark web. It's not good." He pressed some buttons and an article on Perseus appeared. It contained everything League had on him in their files and a bounty: 10 000 000 US$. "I think we have a big problem."

* * *

**Washington DC  
September 6th, 12:36**

Percy arrived at the airport two hours ago. After examining the phone Luthor gave him he came to conclusion that this is some custom-made model. Of course he run it through every anti-malware program he could find, but he somehow doubted if it was bugged normal software would find anything. Luthor was smart. Percy had to give it to him that at least he was honest. This phone was equipped with tons of useful apps and contacts. Percy already set up a meeting with investment agency to do something with his money. He also booked a first-class flight to Jump City, California. This city was quite big, but did not have any superhero on it's own. Because of close proximity to Star City and Coast City, Green Arrow or Green Lantern usually dealt with major super criminals, eventually other leaguers took care of it, but they had no superhero on their own. Percy decided to operate from there. He found a list of major cities with superheroes 'assigned' to them. _some people really need to get themselves a life._ On the list there was also list of major cities with high annual crime rate. Percy analyzed it and after carefully taking everything into consideration he decided that Jump City was best for him. It had also two major benefits when compared to other cities on the list. It was right next to ocean, which doesn't need to be explain. The other pro was that since it was west coast, it meant that Batman was as far away as possible. No Dark Knight next door. Green Arrow and Green Lantern were both cool as far as their short-spanned relation went.

Percy smartly left his bag in the taxi to summon it after he passed the security. Better not to explain why he carries armored outfit and utility belt. Kinda weak to have your secret identity revealed during waiting for departure. Right now Percy was dressed in a suit and carrying only his laptop. The suit was practically required in first class and laptop was so that he had something to do while waiting. After getting bored with learning programming, Percy summoned his bag. He wanted to finally read the manual for his new belt, but just then he heard shooting. He turned, only to see a group of at least ten heavily armed thugs enter the departure hall. Leading them was a very muscular tall man in luchador mask and some green tube coming from his hand to the back of his head. He was wearing brown cargo pants and a sleeveless black muscle shirt that was tucked in his pants. His belt had a fairly large buckle. He wore black gloves and black boots. What got Percy's attention was the fact that the man had no weapon whatsoever. _And I hoped for uneventful day_. Percy quickly run to the bathroom while the terrorists shouted something that escaped his attention. He didn't have time to get to toilets and dress up. Time was of the essence, so he only put on his gauntlets, new belt and domino mask. He felt an urge to open one of the pockets in the belt, so he did. From inside, he pulled pair of red googles/glasses. Curious, Percy put them on over his mask. Immediately, they expanded forming full face cover and kind of a hood, leaving his hair to flair like with KF, but his mouth was covered by hard mask that had voice modulator. Neptune smiled behind the mask. Easily one of the best gifts his father ever got him. He summoned his trident and sneaked through the shadows back to the main area.

"I will ask you for the last time. Where is Perseus Jackson?!" The luchador screamed at the people. Most of them cowered in fear. Percy stepped into the light and created mini earth-quake to attract attention. _Wow. Too much time near Zeus._

 _"_ You looking for someone?" Neptune asked. Of course he was met with several series from machine guns, but he swiftly dodged it or deflected with his trident. He then used water in his gauntlet to form several ice spikes and shoot them at the assailants. Each spike hit the barrel, jamming their weapons. This gave Neptune a chance to close the distance. He punched one of the guys and sent him flying away. He crashed into the nearby cafe and did not stand. People cheered at that, only to be quickly silenced by sound of repeatedly fired hand gun. He looked down on his chest and saw his suit tore in multiple places. Few flattened bullets fell on the floor. One of the other attackers looked at this and started running. Neptune focused and suddenly water burst from nearby hydrant hitting him in the chest and froze, immobilizing him and effectively taking him out of the fight. Water was still pumping, so Neptune created a wave that swept through and froze every single attacker still standing, including pseudo-wrestler. He turned to see the one he threw at the cafe holding gun to the head of small girl.

"N-Now Y-you surr..." He didn't finish as knife hit him (with the hilt, not sharp part) right into the back of his head, sending him unconscious. Behind was standing a woman in dark gray jumper, dark green baseball hat and military trousers. What got Neptune's attention was characteristic mask of a Cheshire Cat.

Percy wanted to initiate conversation, but was interrupted by the sound of breaking ice. The pseudo-wrestler's muscles were now twice the size and his veins were visible. "Nobody imprisons Bane!" He shouted before charging at Neptune.

Not wanting to endanger the people behind him, he instead faced him head on. Both Bane and Neptune locked and tried pushing one another. The former was surprised that this no one would be able to match his strength, but Venom clouded his mind too much and he couldn't make sense of it. Instead, Bane raged more and tried throwing Neptune away. Instead, he ended up being tossed instead. He crushed through security checkpoint and landed there, leaving large crater. Hero then boosted his jump with condensed earth-quake and planned on landing on Bane. The villain caught him before he managed to land and threw him on the ground next to him, deepening the crater. He then stomped, hoping to crash enemy's spine, but before he did it, Neptune was already on his feet. One swift kick sent Bane few feet away. Tired with the wrestling match Percy summoned his trident and pointed it at his enemy. The top crackled with electricity and large discharge hit Bane.

"Huh? Since when can it do that?" There was no time to answer the question, because Bane pumped more Venom into himself and with newfound strength tried to smash Neptune. Hero got distracted and did not notice it fast enough. Without time to avoid the punch, he responded with an attack on his own. When their fists met and made contact huge impact wave went in all direction, rising dust all around them and causing all the windows to break. Percy used this occasion to quickly dance behind Bane and tear the Venom pipe from his back. He then shot another discharge of electricity at what ought to have been his weak spot. Bane immediately fell unconscious.

Using the fact that dust was still in the air, Percy sneaked out and took of his 'super suit'. He then blended into the crowd and tried looking for Cheshire. Suddenly, someone pulled him out and behind the counter of one of the stores. "Must you always make a scene? You attract enough attention with your pretty face and great body."

"Nice to see you too Cheshire." For the first time he actually had a chance to take a closer look at her face. She has thick black hair (now pulled back into a ponytail to easier fit under the hat) and gray eyes, as well as olive-colored skin. "Are you planning on trying to kill me again? We already settled through best of three that I am better than you."

"Need I remind you that I accepted the contract on saving your skin? I didn't get pay so I had to protect my investment and earn my twenty million dollars." She cut him.

"After you disappeared from where I sent you I assumed you stood me up. Sorry not sorry."

"I had to get to some doctor to fix my leg." Percy suddenly remembered about her leg. He looked down to see it bandaged, but without anything that would indicate that it was broken. Back in his world he would assume ambrosia, but here? He decided to drop the question now as he saw police lights outside. "We should get moving else you plan on spending few hours explaining what could they want with you."

Percy silently nodded and followed her outside through broken window in the back. They got into one of the hangars. Inside was a private jet. He looked around, still half expecting an ambush, but he boarded the plane with her. Inside looked actually really comfy. He sat in one of two chairs while Cheshire went to the cockpit and told pilot to start. When she returned, she sat in front of him and started playing with his Sai.

When they were in the air, Percy started conversation. "You already know my name. I think it is only fair that I knew yours."

She chuckled. "Yeah. No. That is not how it works. Tell me. Are you new to this gig? Because surely you should know that I don't need to tell you anything." That was intended to be lighthearted joke, but to Percy it came as a complain. He frowned.

"Sorry, but usually my enemies sent a group of powerful monsters that I had to kill to survive next day, so to answer your question: Yes, I am new to trained killers thing." This actually surprised Jade. After seeing him fight, she expected him to hate killing like other heroes. That was the reason she only knocked this guy in the airport unconscious, or she would risk loosing her payment. Even the 'Bialya incident'. She was sure this was modified recording and probably Psimon forced him to do this or it was some accident that Queen Bee used to cause disturbance. She noticed he is working on his computer on something. There was also the fact that he said monsters.

"What type of monsters are we talking about?"

Percy hesitated. Every ounce of logic told him that she is not to be trusted, but his gut was telling him otherwise. And Percy being himself decided to listen to intuition not logic. He still decided to play a little bit and maybe get some information. "Do you know who I really am? I mean as far as genetics go."

"Well, by the display of power I would assume either some meta-human, Atlantean or alien. So which one?"

"None." He grinned. "Three guess and you are out. Sorry. Such a pretty face." He teased her a bit before continuing. "I guess the closest would be a hybrid of all three. You know Greek myths? I come from different world... dimension if you wish but that is not my favorite word. In my world, they are actual beings. Whole pack: Gods, Titans, monsters, Primordials. All of this is real."

"And where do you sit in this? You can't expect me to believe you are an actual Greek god? Although that would explain your divine body shape." She purred at the end. _Sure. Another earth... why not?_

Percy was mostly unfazed by her attempts at flirt during battle, but now it was getting to him. Back when he was with Annabeth he didn't really notice other girls and since he came here he hadn't really spend time with women. Amazons don't count because they were like Hunters of Artemis given their own country to run. _Maybe except Donna. "_ I am a demigod, son of Poseidon."

Jade chuckled. "So you are a fish Jesus?"

"Why everyone keep using this joke? Seriously. Can't you people be more creative? Yes."

"And the monsters?" At that Percy pulled out a Greek Mythology Bestiary he got at some point when he came to this world. He handed it to her open on index. She looked at list of black lines where names should be. "Is this some kind of a joke?"

"I crossed out the names of every monster I already faced and survived." She looked on the list again and had hard times finding monsters that weren't crossed out.

"How is it even possible? Not even Hercules thought everything." Her attitude changed from halfhearted to dead serious. If this was true then this man in front of her was some kind of freaking death machine.

" _Heracles._ " Percy took great pleasure in correcting this mistake. "Is overrated. As for how, I had six years of near constant fighting for my life. My enemies were getting creative with what monsters they pulled. Except beef head. He crawled back every two years or so. Also, two wars really do wonders on your kill-count."

 _WARS? As in plural?_ Cheshire couldn't believe what she heard. "Wait a moment! Wars? You are younger than me. Wars as in more than one?"

"Yes." Percy watched with a bit of amusement how she lost all her cool and now questioned every word of his. He already killed the logical side of him that was saying not to trust her, but it still rang in the back of his head. "Second Titan war and Second Giant war. After that I came here to escape this constant battle, but well... I met you" He smiled, but instead of his usual cheerful grin came a melancholic smile. Deep down he still missed everyone he left behind and still mourned those who died in both wars. The memories did not belong to the happiest, but he cherished them as they were only ones of his friends. Cheshire wondered for a moment whether to push or not. Finally, she decided to drop the subject. She was about to change the subject when Percy finally finished clicking on his laptop. "So Jade. Now that you know about me maybe you tell me a bit about yourself?"

She was dumbfounded and couldn't speak. It took a moment before she managed to regain control over her tongue. "How did you find out?"

He grinned. "I didn't. I just found a file on assassin that matched your description. You just confirmed it." Deep down, he was proud of his detective work.

"Smart, Good-looking and Rich? Now be careful or soon you will have to hire me to stop the girls from tearing you apart." She joked.

"Now I know your name. Care to tell more?" Percy packed his laptop and now looked at Cheshire.

"Only if you go first. With whole life story, not just some slips. You seem like a really interesting person. Thought about writing an autobiography?"

"Nah. I am not good writer. And nope. No more bedtime stories from me." He yawned and faked going to sleep. Cheshire returned to playing with the sai, albeit disappointed. This demigod really sparked her interest.

* * *

The trip was mostly uneventful after Percy faked going to sleep and actually fell into it. Cheshire decided not to wake him up until they were closing Jump City. They landed in private hangar and left for the city center. It was around 5 PM by the time they were standing in front of the airport.

"Now what?" She asked. "You've plan on doing something interesting?" Last sentence was underlain with slight flirt.

"I must go get myself new clothes and check in some hotel. Then probably I will go swimming to unload."

"So that is how it's called nowadays." She smiled. Before Percy came with some witty comeback she continued. "No clubbing? Casino? I am disappointed. Rich guys usually have an interesting night life."

"Well, probably I will spend most of the night creating myself false backstory and forging documents. If I am to blend into this city, I will need to make myself believable."

"Boring. Call me when someone attacks you." Cheshire wanted to disappear, but Percy grabbed her shoulder.

"Nunu. You decided to serve as my bodyguard so you will stay close enough to actually help." Truthfully, Percy did not want to leave her unsupervised. He trusted her to some extend, but this voice in the back of his head was really persistent.

"Fine. But I am not wearing a suit. And you get me some nice dress."

"Why the dress?"

"Isn't it obvious? I am dragging you to some club against your will. If I am stuck with you I will at least enjoy it."

"Yeah... No." Percy protested. He was tempted to agree, but he wanted to secure his identity before anything got out. "Maybe tomorrow once I am done with the formalities of creating fake life for myself. Nice try though."

Jade wanted to add more, but she relented. They went to one of this fancy hotels and Percy rented the royal suite of course. Receptionist looked at them curiously, but said nothing. The apartment was pretty large, but smaller than what Percy had at Luthor Plaza in Washington. Entering through the doors, you got into large living room. On the left there was a really large couch in front of which was glass coffee table. On the wall in front of it was large TV. On the other side there was a table with four chairs. There were also two doors. One led to quite large bathroom. Outside of usual conveniences that come with such place it had both shower chamber and bath with massage function. Percy was tempted to immediately jump in there and lock the doors for hours, but he stopped himself and instead went to see the sleeping room. It was also larger than normal, with large king-sized bed, a fireplace with two armchairs in front and really fluffy rug.

Jade looked at Percy and sighted. "Guess I am sleeping on the couch."

It took him a moment to understand what she meant. "No. I am sleeping at the couch. You get the bed." This legitimately surprised her.

"Huh?"

"Well, A: I can manage and it's not like I won't have this for probably the rest of my life. One night won't make a difference. and B: If I had really forced you to sleep on the couch, my mother would drill her way into this dimension to scold me. Her glare could rival that of Medusa and I do not wish to join my step-father as a garden statue." Jade wondered what he meant by garden statue, but decided not to ask. Percy took one more look at the bed and hesitantly added. "Or maybe we can both sleep at this bed. It's so large that if we cut it in half each of the halves could hold two people."

"Fine by me. Now wake me up if something interesting starts to happen. Or if you get bored." She added with a smile.

Percy sat on the couch and spent next few hours creating a fake persona for himself. Luthor gave him an idea and documents provided by Hermes helped. After actually looking through the documents for the first time Percy couldn't stop himself from laughing. He didn't bother before because he simply thought that Hermes summoned his own documents, but now he found a set of report cards from private school in United Kingdom. There was also his birth act, which stated that he was born to Sally and Paul Jackson. There were also other documents like his health documentation (obviously fake because he stopped seeing mortal doctors after he first visited Camp Half-Blood). He didn't really care, but he noticed that documents magically changed the date of birth to match his actual age, instead of the bonus three years Hermes gave him. Probably he used mist and it faded soon after he got here. After finishing with the documents, Percy got to work. Creating false identity for not one person, but whole family wasn't that easy. He looked into this Triton Security that allegedly belonged to his late father. The company was strange. It did provide security for many important buildings, but that's where information ended. There was no contact number, no email address, not even a physical location. Percy also noticed that name Paul Jackson figures as founder. _Huh? someone's doing my job for me._ He abandoned this and focused on establishing his story. His parents life was their private and nobody's else. After middle-school his father sent him to private boarding school in England. Percy stayed there until he finished the education. He planned on going to Oxford, but his father death got him back to the states. There, he inherited the company he had no idea how to run, so he sold majority of the shares to Luthor and was satisfied with small package that ensured he still had some voice. He bought this package that night, but nobody needed to know.

After that was all done, Percy undressed and took a quick shower before going to sleep. His nightwear consisted of just underpants, but he was too tired to actually care. Jade was already asleep and it's not like she would look under the blanket. He was asleep before his head even hit the pillow.

* * *

Next morning Percy walk up to a shock of hair blocking his vision. He felt something... someone warm hugging him. And he was hugging back. He tried sitting up or at least separating, but Jade stopped him and murmured.

"It's too early. Let me sleep some more." She was completely unfazed by this situation. Percy finally forced himself out and moved away. "Ugh. But you were such a nice heater..."

Percy felt his cheeks turn red. "How did we even end up like this? I remember falling asleep on completely other side of the bed."

"I have no idea. You were staying up late. I woke around three in the morning and saw us like this. You don't see me complaining though." Jade sat up as well. She was wearing a loose nightgown and her black hair was a mess. "Probably you had some nightmare. _Or really happy dream"_ Percy turned even more red on that last comment. He stood up and went to get a shower. Cold water hit him and immediately all problems seemed to disappear. His mind cleared and he had a chance to think clearly. He thought about all that happened throughout last few days and smiled. Finally, he cleaned himself and stood up. Not wanting to waste time on toweling, he willed himself dry. Water immediately fell from him like he was venomous. Percy put on new pair of trunks and a bathrobe.

When he stepped out, Jade was already waiting. "So? What is the plan for today _boss?_ " The word was underlain with so much sarcasm that probably deaf would hear it. Percy only smiled.

"Well, I have several meetings planned. First I am getting new wardrobe. There is a tailor in this city that Luthor praised in one of the notes. I set up a meeting at ten fifteen." Percy pulled his phone and looked at calendar. "Then I have an appointment with real estate agent."

"And his name?" Jade asked curious. When Percy gave it, she grinned. "I see. The Secret Master. He and his crew specialize in... certain field of real estate. Shadows, Luthor, even some super heroes. One hundred percent secrecy is guaranteed."

"And nobody ever tried to get the information by force? I mean there are many powerful telepaths out there. Also, if he is that powerful why is he estate agent?" Percy was curious. Of course he wondered how can there be so many secret passages and rooms in different buildings. It took more than few people to build an apartment with secret room.

"The Secret Master is a meta-human. He can make people forget secrets. I have no idea how it works, but he just causes his workers to forget the secrets they learned during the work. Even he forgets all of them. Also, he never asks any unneeded questions. As for why he is estate agent... you will know once he sends you a bill." Jade was serious when speaking about him. Everyone was. This man was very influential.

"Ok then. Anyway, after that I have another appointment with an investment company to secure my fortune. Then I am technically free, so I will work on..." He wanted to say something but she cut him off.

"Great. So we are going to a club. I heard that there is this place called Lotus which is great." Jade was surprised when Percy cringed.

"Yeah... No. I will look for something better. Is that really necessary? You can go to the club without me."

"But who will pay for my fun then?" She joked before disappearing in the bathroom.

Percy planned on taking his suit with him, but he dropped the idea and instead just packed the belt into his laptop bag. He then put on his more casual clothes and got ready to leave, but Cheshire was still not ready. It was still early and Percy had more than an hour before this Tailor appointment of his, so he put up the news.

 _"And now we return to the crash of flight W16-16."_ This sparked his interest. The designation sounded so familiar. " _The plane was supposed to travel from Washington DC to Jump City, but soon after it left the airport in the capital it exploded. The reasons of it are unknown, but authorities do not exclude the possibility of sabotage or bombing. Search for survivors is still in progress, but Agent Carwall said not to have high hopes. The explosion and the fall left machine in state that it would need to be miracle for anyone NOT to become puddle of burning goo."_ Another voice spoke " _Yeah. Thank you Vicky. That was quite... descriptive. Government is yet to give official statement regarding the..."_

Percy turned the TV off. This was supposed to be his flight. Someone detonated the plane he was supposed to be in. If Cheshire haven't snatched him, he would most likely be one of this puddles. Jade, who as it turned out already finished and sneaked at him when he was distracted looked at him with a bit of pity. For some weird and unknown reason in this short time he grew on her. She enjoyed teasing him and how he could go from careless to embarrassed in just a matter of seconds. He was also kind and loyal... _Wait. What bullshit is that? He is just a guy paying me to protect him_.

"Someone bombed the plane in attempt to get me. If it wasn't for you, I would already be dead. Thank you. You did save my life." Percy smiled at her.

"That was Detonator, an assassin working for the league of shadows."

"Aren't you working for them as well?" Percy asked. His hand instinctively went to the pocket in which he kept riptide. It's been almost two months since trident became his primary weapon, but old habits die hard.

"I do. But it doesn't work that way. Unless there is a mission given, I am free to accept other contracts as well. And since it's not League that put a bounty on your head, I am free to stop the assassinations. As long as you will pay me at least." She grinned.

"Yeah. You win. I will fund your club escapade tonight."

* * *

**Undisclosed location**   
**September 7th, 12:16**

Ra's and Luthor were sitting in a plane. They were on their way to Taipei.

"How is the hunt going?" Luthor asked. Even if the question might have seemed vague for outsiders, they both perfectly knew which hunt businessman referred to.

Great One frowned. "It is harder than we assumed. No one was able to do anything to him." Ra's displayed several videos of Percy fighting KGBeast, Shiva and later on Bane. "At first we assumed that his powers are what makes him a threat. It was almost a grave mistake. He is skilled and cunning. He held himself against Lady Shiva and matched Bane in hand to hand combat. He also outsmarted Mr. Knyazyev by luring him into a trap. Not to mention that he did not board the plane that he bought ticket for."

"He is smart, I give him that. Hiring one of the assassins as his bodyguard..." Luthor looked at video of Cheshire knocking down one of the Bane's thugs.

"Yes. He offered her a contract with double of what she would get for killing him." Ra's looked a bit irritated.

"Isn't she one of your operatives? Just order her to kill him in his sleep." Luthor suggested without even slightest worry.

"I can't. She already accepted a contract to protect him. If she betrayed him now it would put the whole league in bad light."

"But she took a contract to kill him before that."

"It is an open contract that doesn't require registration. We posted a flyer that we want his head. He actually gave her a paper version which she signed. It means that she is bound by it."

"Then there is problem of incoming summit. We already slipped the info to the deep web that she is going to assassinate me. What now?"

"Simple: we replace her with someone else. It was just a rumor after all" Demon's head grinned evilly. "It's not like they are always one hundred percent true."

* * *

**Jump City  
September 7th, 16:33**

The meeting with The Secret Master was less impressive than Percy expected. He gave him specifications on what type of apartment he wanted and what 'special amenities' were required. Percy decided on two level penthouse. Lower level contained large living area, kitchen separated from the rest with glass, soundproof walls, master bedroom, giant bathroom, one guestroom and his office. And there was cinema room. Not some cheep flat-screen TV with two armchairs, but actual Cinema with rows of chairs and everything. From the living area you could walk out to large balcony. It could easily park two cars outside. Form balcony stairs led up to helicopter platform. Percy did not own any, but maybe he will need it later. In the living area there were also two pairs of stair leading to the second level. Upstairs Percy asked for library, large gym, swimming pool, several more guestrooms and a separate storage room. In the office on the lower level and in the library (which was directly above it) on the upper level there was a hidden elevator that could take you several floors below. Percy bought whole two floors and had it rearranged to suit for his HQ. There, he had several stands for his suit(s), a powerful computer with several monitors, an archery range, sparring room, a separate room for his trophies, a holding cell and a lab. There was also a secret passage to vault designed similarly to the one he saw on Themyscira, but instead of going into old dungeon you went into high-tech, highly-secured secret chamber where he could safely place the equipment that is too dangerous. Back in the apartment Percy also had few additional secret compartments to be hidden in key places to later stock them with what he might need in case of attack. There was also high-speed elevator that could take him to private underground garage or to water tunnel leading out into the bay. Whole place was to be 'reinforced and secured better than atomic bunker under white house'. Secret Master listened to all the demands and said that everything will be ready in two weeks. This really surprised Percy. He half-expected the guy to laugh at him saying that this is impossible or tell him that it will take few months. Instead, he was supposed to wire half the (horrendous) payment up front as soon as they signed the deal and be ready to move in to the new fully furnished home in two weeks. Looking at the bill Percy understood why this guy chose to be estate agent. The price had eight zeros.

Cheshire was not present during this whole ordeal. Percy did not trust her that much to reveal all the secrets of his future home and base. She waited outside in the rented car. When he was done with all that Percy changed into his elegant suit and they drove to investment agency. Even after buying the apartment, Percy had way too much money to just let it lay in bank. Investing some would be what any normal person would do, so that is what he wanted to do. They were both riding the elevator to the upper level. Percy made Cheshire put on a suit and she looked like professional bodyguard, gun included. After they walked into the office they were greeted by a man wearing gray suit and red tie. Percy noticed red straps under his jacket. They exchanged pleasantries and Percy sat down in the chair in front of large desk.

"I must say it's no small surprise to host such a young man. To be honest initially I thought that it is some kind of a joke, but everything checked out." Inside Percy breathed a sight of relief. His fake backstory worked. This few articles he set were good enough. Probably if someone was too suspicious, he would discover that something isn't right and changing timestamps on articles is not that easy to trace. "I am honored that you chose our company."

"Yeah. Mr. Luthor advised me to contact you first. I don't really want to have to worry about anything. That is why I sold him the company. Running business? that's not me."

They continued the talk and finally, Percy struck a deal. He did not give all his money, but rather kept about a third or so. This way he did not have to worry about running out of funds and still had secured, steady source of income. When everything was signed and he and Cheshire were about to leave window broke and Percy was pulled with some sticky rope. He was hanging twenty levels above ground and he was not enjoying it. He looked up to see a man wearing a purple spandex costume. His mask had shades of purple, with the back portion being dark purple and the front portion being regular purple. It also sported a spider emblem that took up most of his forehead and then intersected with his golden eye pieces. The torso of the suit was dark purple, along with his hands, knees, elbow, inner elbow and parts of his feet, while the remainder of the costume was purple. Around his wrist he had two dull gray bracelets from which the line Percy was right now hanging on extended.

"Sorry to interrupt this meeting, but someone is paying quite a money for your head. I guess you must be going so I will stop holding you back now." Black spider joked and he released the rope. Luckily, Cheshire caught it just in time. Now Percy was hanging only 19 levels above the ground. _Great. My chances of survival just tripled._ Percy thought to himself before starting to climb.

Cheshire still tired lifting the rope and getting Percy up faster. She turned to the dumbfound businessman and screamed at him. "Don't just stand there! Go fetch some help!" Once he was gone, Percy looked relieved and looked at black spider grinning.

"Dude. Seriously? What does a guy have to do to have one day without assassinations attempt?" Black spider looked completely surprised by this change of attitude. Gone was lazy, scared billionaire teen and in his place was someone else. This... whoever it was suddenly launched himself and landed back in the office. Percy then pulled one of his gauntlets and put it on. He used the water stored in there to create a tendril and pull black spider inside. He was too surprised to react before he landed inside. Cheshire then quickly knocked the lights out of him. Percy quickly gathered the water and hid the gauntlet just as security arrived.

"Take this man away. I am late for next appointment already." He told them, already leaving.

"But sir. You will need to give statement to the police or he will be released."

"Tell them to contact my lawyer." Percy shouted, already stepping into the elevator. Once the doors closed, Cheshire looked at him amused.

"But you don't have a lawyer."

"Exactly." Percy grinned widely.

* * *

**Mount Justice**   
**September 7th, 12:45**

Since Percy left, the Team got divided. Artemis, Kaldur and to some extend Conner supported his decision while the rest was outraged by his actions. Of course this led to very poor performance during training sessions and ever-increasing tension. Finally, Megan snapped.

"Enough! We can't go like this anymore. Can't we just return to how it was before? I miss Percy but what happened happened and we can't change the past. I can't watch this team fall apart because of one fight Percy had with Batman."

Kaldur nodded. "I agree, but it's not that simple to just let go. Batman really went overboard. Percy did what he had to do."

Megan shook her head. "We are not having this discussion. Boys. Shake each other hands and apologize for your behavior. This goes to both groups." She flew to Artemis and extended her hand. "Friends?"

Artemis instead hugged her. "Friends."

Robin and Wally were reluctant to do the same, but Kaldur stepped up and apologized first. Only Conner was still unconvinced. Through this short time that Percy spent with them the two really bonded. They had this silent understanding and mutual respect between them. He believed that they could become like brothers if given time. Megan noticed his hesitation and flew to him.

" _Sorry for how it turned. I know you and Percy had this... weird male bond. I hoped you could get past that for now. He is not dead. He just left. Conner. Please."_ She extended her hand to him, but he instead hugged her tightly.

" _For you."_ They both blushed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I suck at this type of flirt and relationship as whole. I am not a romance type so forgive me if it was cringy. Next chapter will have more fighting and finally close the assassin's arc. I am slowly running out of the possible characters that would try to kill Percy.


	8. Assassins: Part 3

**Jump City  
September 7th, 20:16**

Percy was getting ready for 'clubbing' with Cheshire. Or rather he was sitting on the couch, waiting for her to get ready. He decided to finally start reading instruction for the belt he received from his father. It was quite strange that it had exactly the same design as his other, non-magical belt. Of course Percy had no idea which pocket contained which items. He found the goggles/mask by complete accident. After examining other containers, he found one that magically refilled itself with Ambrosia and stored small vial of nectar that seemed to never end. It was somehow similar to Cornucopia, but with only godly food. Quite useful as personal first aid kit. Another pocket contained fourteen sided box. Inside, there were fourteen pills, each in separate compartment. Each had a small symbol of one of the Olympian gods on it and there was a copy of same symbol under it. There wasn't any note, but Percy knew better than to try any of it. He could practically feel the divine energy in each of them. He continued to pillage through other pockets. Many were empty, presumably to store other items. One was a water container. It was nice to know that he always had some more water. Of course in normal situation he could summon salt water wit his trident, but in might not always work and additional backup is not bad. Finally, Percy found small, thin book. When he pulled it out, a folded letter fell out.

_My dear son.  
I am sorry for how things turned. We weren't exactly honest with you. We did not abandon the world millenniums ago. It happened only two hundred years in the past and it was a slow process. The mist started to fail. With new inventions, new threats and this meta-humans running around we were constantly at risk of exposure. People slowly started to expect to see monsters, gods and heroes. Should we stayed, everyone would see us. Gradually, one by one gods left this dimension. The last one was Ares, who was forced to leave when he staged World War Two and was defeated by Amazon, daughter of Zeus. By now you have figured out why this dimension is so different. I am truly sorry we did not warn you, but we really hoped you would just create a normal life for yourself. Still, I am proud knowing you chose to become a hero. Yes, we still watch you. Hephaestus TV catches everything from multiple dimensions. We can't intervene, but we can watch. You make me proud son. Remember that. I wish I could tell more, but Fates will kill me.  
One last thing: Cherish your new friends. Don't let them go.  
Poseidon._

Percy's emotions raged inside him. On one hand he was angry at gods for lying to him. They deliberately hid major information from him. They still made his life into reality show. On the other hand... No. there wasn't really another side of this stick. They just tricked him again. At least they could no longer influence his life. He was his own demigod now and he was forging his own destiny. He decided to open the instruction and quickly go through it. The belt was rather complex design made by Leo and Hephaestus. It had an enchantment that allowed it to change shape, mask it into normal belt if needed. It could also cram his suit inside much like Flash ring, except when activated it put it directly on him, cramming his previous clothes inside. Having to undress to the briefs in front of everyone to put a suit might work for a speedster, but not for a demigod. The belt, outside of what Percy already found was supposed to have several sets of celestial bronze handcuffs which should be indestructible in this world, mask spiked with tech which he didn't care about at the moment, a pocket which can become gun holster just in case, a thin, long rope and some other useful stuff. Oh! And large pocked in the back could fit more inside than it looked like. There were also this fourteen pills. Each could grant Percy access to the domains of corresponding Olympian. Each held small part of their essence that would grant him domain he needed or asked for at the moment. They were incredibly powerful and were supposed to serve as last resort if things went south. After consuming he had anywhere between one hour and a day before the effects faded. It all depended on intensity with which he used said power. There was also the downside. After using the pill he would need to wait 48 hours before taking another. When essence entered him, a part of the god would influence him, his actions and to some extend thoughts. Percy decided not to use it at all for now. Not until all else failed. They were too powerful and dangerous.

Someone suddenly grabbed him and pulled back, trying to choke him. Percy's instinct kicked in and he tossed this person through the room. He expected whoever it was to crash into something, but he instead gracefully landed on the floor and took battle stance. The man was dressed in orange and dark-bronze suit resembling a tiger. He didn't have a chance to take a closer look because the assassin lunged at him. To any human or even some metas this would probably be impossible to block, but Percy not only grabbed him mid-punch, but also delivered quick counter punch putting into it enough strength to actually put him unconscious.

"Well... That was fast. I expected you to take some time with Bronze tiger. He is after all one of the world's greatest martial artists." Cheshire was leaning over the door frame of the bathroom. She was now wearing long red dress with cur on the right side which gave her much more mobility. She had stilettos, but Percy was certain that she could still kill, most likely using said pair of footwear. Her hair was pulled into a long tail and tied with silver ring. Percy put on his belt and activated the camouflage. It turned into normal belt and merged with his outfit. _Gotta love Valdez-tech._ Percy turned to Cheshire.

"We going?"

"I think we shouldn't leave him here just like that. Or this little kitty might escape." Cheshire smiled. Percy picked Bronze tiger like a sack of potatoes.

"Won't it look a little strange that we defeated master martial artist?"

"Right. We will dump him in some dark alley and give police an anonymous tip. Happy?" Jade wanted to leave already.

"Ok. But we will deal with it once we return. For now..." Percy pulled a pair of celestial bronze handcuffs from his belt and bound the assassin to the heater. "This should hold him until we return."

* * *

**Watchtower  
September 7th, 21:16**

Wonder Woman came to Captain Atom who was standing in front of holographic screens.

"Any news?"

"We are still tracking him. Right now we established that he is somewhere in Jump City, but we have hard time pinpointing his location." Diana wanted to leave, but Atom stopped her. "There is more." An image of crashed plane appeared. "Apparently this is the plane he was supposed to travel. It is possible that it was an attempt on his life."

Diana didn't know how to react. So many dead, so many collateral casualties. All because someone placed a bounty on a teenager. "And what about who put the bounty?"

"Right now Batman is working on it." Diana scowled. Right now in her book Bruce was on probation. He had no right to kick Percy off the team. It was not his decision to make. "And you believe that is enough?"

"Diana. I know that right now you and Bat aren't on the best terms. I agree with you that he was wrong and shouldn't have kicked Percy off the team. But fighting inside the League will just weaken us more." Captain atom tried to soothe the conflict.

"Maybe it's exactly opposite. For too long we accepted his actions. Batman is running around without supervision. He trust no one, but expects that we will all trust him. Percy was right. He is a hypocrite living a delusion." Wonder Woman got angrier and angrier with each second.

"Whoa. Maybe slow down a bit." Atom took a step back. Since the fight two days ago morale were really low in the League. It was even worse with Diana. She was constantly on the edge. "He is still your friend. I know Percy got really close to you, but aren't you taking it a bit too far?"

Diana frowned. "Percy is my family." She stormed and left.

_Recognized Wonder Woman 0-3_

* * *

**Jump City  
September 7th, 23:45**

Percy was setting in a lounge and playing with his phones while Jade was dancing. Honestly, he had no idea why was he even needed. She tried to pull him onto the dance floor, but he wriggled off. As time passed he was starting to get bored. There wasn't much to do. For last six years he was mostly separated from the mortal world. Now he found himself in here and he had no idea what to do.

"May I join in?" A woman about his age asked. She had high cheekbones, a sharp nose, green eyes and long brown hair. She wore a sleeveless dark green dress that ended on her knees and perfectly hugged her figure.

"Why not. What's your name?"

She giggled. "It's impolite to ask for a name without introducing yourself." Percy wanted to correct himself, but she did not give him a chance. "My name is Nyssa. Nyssa Raatko. And you might be..."

"Percy Jackson. Nice to meet you."

"So... what are you doing in this club? I don't believe you came here for the Wi-Fi, because they don't have one and most people come here to either drink or dance. In some cases both.."

"Well, my friend dragged me here. I am new in town and she decided I need to have some fun." Percy half-joked.

"So where is this 'friend' of yours?" Nyssa asked smiling.

"Someone on the dance floor. She tried to get me to dance, but I am not really in a mood right now. It's been a really tiring day." In truth, Percy was still angry at the gods. They lied to him before sending him into the unknown. He wanted rest not world ridden with crime, powerful aliens and villains trying to kill him on every step.

"Oh. So I take you wouldn't want to dance with me for a bit..." She looked really disappointed. Finally, Percy understood that she was flirting with him.

"Fine. But only for a moment." They went to the dance floor. Soon, Percy forgot about Gods, problems, assassins and all the troubles. He just had fun. Somewhere in the back of his head there was this ringing sound about danger, but Percy dismissed it at being too paranoiac. While they were dancing Nyssa got closer and closer. Percy felt her enthralling scent. His mind clouded and he could only focus on her. Her beautiful eyes, shining so bright. So green. So... Perfect.

* * *

After some time Nyssa pulled Percy out of the dance floor and they walked to the exit. His mind was focused solely on her and how beautiful she was. How her dress hugged her perfect figure while she pulled him outside. She dragged him to a remote, dark room and locked the doors behind. Percy was subconsciously aware of surrounding, but his mind did not want to proceed anything other than beautiful image in front of him.

The room was dark, with doorwindow blocked with perfectly black something that made it impossible to see inside. There was a chair in the middle and few unlit candles surrounding it. The only source of light in the room was one lit candle under the chair. Nyssa pulled dazed Percy and sat him on the chair.

"I must admit, you have the strongest mind I've ever seen. I perfected this spell for almost a year and you still managed to resist it. I had to repeat it time after time to wear you down. Impressive. Really impressive." She talked, but Percy only registered beautiful, flawless voice and not the meaning. He was too focused on how her eyes gave slight green glow in the darkness to see how she lit the candles and stood in front of him. Now that there was more light in the room, the strange markings surrounding the chair and old symbols became visible. "Let's begin the proper spell. I hope you won't resist me, will you sweety?"

Percy wanted to scream, to pledge his undying loyalty to this perfection in front of him, but some part of his mind fought. Some small, mostly insignificant part of his mind tried it's best to stop this. To regain control over his own thoughts.

"What is that? You are still resisting? How is this even possible." For a moment Percy heard something screechy in her voice, but he dismissed it. There could be nothing wrong in this perfection of his. She spoke again, confirming that it was just an illusion. "Now sweety. Look me deep in the eyes. How do I look?" Nyssa was talking with her smoothing, perfect voice while fixing her already flawless dress around her upper chest. Percy couldn't resist looking a bit lower than the eyes until they started glowing with eerie green light. He was enthralled by them instantly, but in this brief moment he pulled a small box out of his belt. The rational part of his brain that took control for this moment managed to get the box and open it just enough to pull a pill, but he did not take it. He did not even know which one was it. She started chanting in what Percy recognized as latin, but spoken backward.

 _"Eticaf atpecearp aem muirepmi"_ The runes on the ground started to glow. Some part of Percy's mind tried to resist, but he was slowly submitting to her power. _No! I can't surrender.  
_" _Erebil erretimid"_ The light from the candles surrounding him changed to green. _It can't end this way. I will not become a slave!  
"Em tipicca aluger" _Ring surrounding his chair started to glow with green and golden light and shot up a pillar of light completely cutting Percy off. _If I surrender, she will either kill me after or force me to use my power on her enemies.  
__"Iuqes metatnulov maem"_ He could feel a veil surrounding his every thought getting thicker. His body already gave up for the most part. _I. Won't. Be. A Slave!_

With last effort, Percy managed to take the pill and swallow it. Immediately, a power surged through him. It felt as if he just drank a gallon of nectar. Strangely, it didn't burn. Instead, this power surged through him, releasing every single cell of his from the foreign influence. He heard a voice speaking to him, but there was no sound. It seemed to be somewhere in his mind.

_Perseus. I, Hera, Queen of Olympus lend you my power. I grant you the strength of mind worthy of the rulers. I cleanse you of foreign influence as no king nor queen should be controlled with force. I give you presence with which a king should walk and command. May this gift serve you well and maybe you will forgive my deceptions._

Percy stood up and in an instance activated his armor and summoned his trident. He could feel the renewing power of the sea course through him, further stabilizing him and granting him total independence. With a quick flick of his hand he swiped the floor with water from his gauntlet and cleared the symbols.

"NO! That is not possible. No one can resist my charm. I made sure of that." She screamed at him. The green light in her eyes died completely. Only now it occurred to Neptune that most of the time she was muttering the same spell under her breath. He was so charmed that he did not notice it before, but not it was clear.

"The sea can't be contained. You can try, but it ends badly. Now, tell me why you did it?" Percy aimed his trident at her.

"Ugh! You were supposed to be the perfect weapon against my father. I've seen you fight. Even the big blue can't match you. He has strength, but you have skills. You were supposed to be my ultimate tool of revenge." She stopped for a moment and Percy hesitated. Then, her eyes glowed green. "And you will!"

She started speaking really fast. Percy recognized it to be the same spell. Runes, even half-destroyed glowed and repaired themselves. He felt his willpower diminish, but immediately it all returned and with improved power. He focused on the magic in the air and change it's current to flow into his trident. It started to spark with green lightnings, but it quickly changed blue. The runes stopped glowing and Nyssa fell on her knees and screamed in pain. The magic was now being pulled out of her. Percy finally stopped, but instead of releasing the magic he kept it there, ready to strike just in case.

"Who is your father and why you want revenge so bad?" He spoke and sent her his wolf stare. She tried to crawl away while still looking at him, but she stopped when behind her doors opened and Jade walked in.

"I leave you for half an hour and you do what?" Percy wanted to reciprocate with equally mean comment, but she continued. "You attack... you... You attack my mistress!"

"Yes! Come here flower. Come and protect me." Nyssa was now smiling at Percy. Jade eyes became dull and empty as she walked in front of the trident, blocking the line of sight.

"Jade? What is going on?" Percy was confused. In the meantime Nyssa managed to stand up.

"Isn't it obvious? I performed the spell on her when you first arrived in this city. Back when she went to the toilet at the airport. I needed to get close to you, so I implanted this idea into her head that she needed to... What's going on? Why am I telling you this. Agh!" She screamed and fell on her knees. "I implanted the idea that she needs to get you to Lotus Club. I learned this spell and when I saw video of you fighting I knew that... that... NO! Get out of my head!" She started rolling on the floor and screaming. "I... I knew you could defeat my father in battle and end him once and for all. No Lazarus Pit this time. No more Ra's Al'Ghoul ever again. He would finally pay for what happened to my family and what he did to me. I would... I... I would... I would tell you nothing! Cheshire! Put a knife to your neck and if he does anything slice it op..." She didn't finish as she started wriggling in pain. Her mind could no longer comprehend what was going on around her.

Percy wanted to help her, but Cheshire put a knife to her neck. "Don't try anything handsome. We wouldn't want to paint your hair red. It's not really your color." To prove her words, she pressed the knife slightly and few drops of red blood streamed down the knife. He froze, looking at Nyssa with vengeful eyes.

"Let. Her. Go!" Percy's eyes shone with golden light. Nyssa took a step back, but tried to hide her fear.

"We will do it the hard way then. You kill Ra's Al'Ghoul and then she will go."

"release her now!" Percy said with utter calmness, but his eyes practically burned with golden flames. Nyssa tried to say something, but great pain stopped her. She couldn't move any of her muscles without feeling like someone was burning her alive.

Finally, she relented. "Ok. I will do what you ask, but please stop this! Jade! I give you your freedom. I release you from my rule. I surrender your will. You are free. Now make this pain..." She felt the phantom flames weaken, but it still hurt. "Make it stop. Please!" Cheshire fell on the floor. She was dazed and had troubles keeping balance. Percy kept staring at Nyssa with his golden eyes for a moment until the fire died. She then also fell and let a sight of relief. Her body was exhausted from this pain. She had hard time staying awaken. "How... How did you do that? What was this? It felt like my very essence was slowly burning out, but at the same time it painfully regenerated."

Percy ignored her. Instead, he helped Cheshire stand up. "You alright?"

"I will be once I put this knife through her throat so deep it will come out on the other side!" Cheshire screamed and wanted to launch herself at Nyssa, but Percy held her tightly, hugging her. She tried kicking him, although it had no effect whatsoever. "Let me go. I want to end this b..." She was stopped when Percy placed a finger on her mouth. She was tempted to bite it, but curiosity won over her bitter state.

Percy walked toward Nyssa, his trident still charged with power. He used the water from his gauntlet to create a thick, heavy bindings over her hands and legs. She had no way of moving. The water froze, making them even heavier. Percy then pulled out a notepad and pen from his belt and wrote some notes. He attached the note to her and focused on all the power he still had gathered in his trident. Shadows pulled Nyssa and she dissolved into darkness. All the glow and sparkles instantly disappeared. And Percy felt a bit drained.

"Shadow traveling is really hard. I have no idea how Nico used to do that so often..." Percy muttered to himself before turning to Jade. Only to recieve a slap on his face.

"Ugh. I almost died because of you!"

"You are an assassin. Your job is all about almost dying." Percy joked, but Cheshire only frowned.

"You... You... Ugh! Fine. Let's just go. I had enough fun for this week." Percy wanted to give a witty come back, but decided to stay silent. For some reason to him this woman was more scary than angry Batman.

* * *

**Jump City  
September 8th 11:41**

Wonder Woman entered the interrogation room of Jump City Police Department. In front of her sat a woman in dark green dress. She had dark hair and weak green glow in her eyes. Her clothes were tattered and a bit burned and her hands were red. It looked like she kept her arms up to elbow in bucket full of slush for at least few hours.

"So you are Nyssa Raatko. Or do you prefer Nyssa Al'Ghoul." The woman flinched when Diana said the last word. "Don't worry. I am not going to reveal your secret to the police. To them you are still wanted for several 'ritual killing' across the town." Diana reassured her.

"And you are Wonder Woman. What do you want?" Nyssa gave her angry glare, but Diana just ignored it.

"I want information. I know that you encountered Percy. It's obvious from the iceburns on your forearms. I want to know where to find him."

Nyssa thought for a moment before answering. "This information will cost you. I know where he is staying, but you can't expect me to just give this info to you."

Diana gritted her teeth, but remained calm on the outside. "I can get you lessen sentence and protection from death penalty."

"No. I want freedom. It's that or he will never be found. Both he and this girl of his are already dead men walking."

"Girl?" Diana was surprised. Until now all reports stated that Percy traveled alone. "What girl."

"Not talking. I want a lawyer." Nyssa stated. her face was completely empty of any emotion.

Wonder Woman grabbed the table and her fingers deformed it, leaving a permanent mark. She stood up. "I didn't want to resort to this, but you leave me no choice." She pulled the lasso of truth and tied her. "Where will I find Percy Jackson?"

"You will meet him in hell." Nyssa spat. Lasso tightened around her, but her body still felt numb after her encounter the precious day.

"Where is Percy Jackson staying?" Diana grabbed the lasso tighter and golden gleam of it increased.

"You will meet him in... You will... He..." Nyssa tried to fight it, but with each word lasso tightened itself and made it harder to breath. Finally, she gave up. "You will find him in this building." She wrote an address on piece of paper that was laying in front of her. "Royal suite. Now..." She didn't have a chance to finish. Diana snatched the piece of paper and already left.

* * *

**Happy Harbor  
September 8th, 15:30**

Conner and Megan returned from school already and they were sitting in the living area. She was cooking and he watched snowing TV screen.

"Can you help me with opening the jar Conner?"

"Yeah..." He stood up and walked over to the kitchen part. Megan telepathically handed him the jar of honey while she was scavenging the cupboards for other ingredients. He grabbed the bottom and twisted the top, but it didn't move. He tried harder, but instead of opening, the jar exploded. He applied to much strength to wrong hand and now the whole kitchen was covered in honey. His clothes were all sticky and a bit torn by flying glass shards. Immediately, he got angry and wanted to smash something, but then he looked at Megan and noticed that she is covered in honey as well. In a span of seconds, his rage was replacement by embarrassment.

"Sorry... I-I didn't mean to..." He tried to apologize, but she only smiled.

"Don't worry Conner. I can always make cookies with sugar like always. I just tried to do some experiments."

_Recognized Kid Flash, B0-3_

"Hello Guys!" In just a few seconds Wally was in the kitchen. "Oh! You look sweeter than usually Megalicious." To that Conner who gritted his teeth so loud that Megan started to worry about the state of his dentition. KF completely ignored it and tried to zoom in and get closer to the martian, but one of his shoes hit the puddle of spilled honey and crushed glass and he would tumble down if Superboy didn't grab him and lift him in the air. Now dangling, Wally lost his smile and was rather embarrassed.

Luckily, Conner did not make any comments. Instead, he just tossed KF onto the couch. He fell with a thud. One of his hands got stuck between the pillows.

"Guys! I think I found something" Wally shouted to them and pulled something square wrapped in silver foil. He unwrapped it and found something similar to brownie square. "Oh! Sweeet!"

"Wait! I think it is one of Per..." Megan never had a chance to finish before Wally stuffed the whole thing in his mouth. "Never mind..."

At first, Wally just enjoyed the taste. Strangely, instead of chocolate, he felt like he just ate his mothers lasagna. "It doesn't taste like brownie. What is... UGH!" Suddenly, he felt like a flames coursed through his body. His accelerated healing kicked in and the pain lessened, but he still could barely walk. Megan and Conner rushed to him. His whole body was hot and his muscles were refusing to cooperate with his brain.

"Idiot. Conner! Go get some help. Preferably Wonder Woman. She might know what it was." Megan gently lifted KF in the air using her telekinesis and moved him to med-bay. Superboy rushed to the mission room to get main computer.

"This is Superboy to Wonder Woman. We require immediate assistance in the Cave. Wally ate something that belonged to Percy and now he is in large deal of pain. We fear it might be fatal." The message was short and on point. He wanted to get this out as soon as possible. Even if Wally was irritating and consantly hitting on Megan and not thinking before acting, he was also still his friend and Conner was not about to let one of his friends die because of a food poisoning.

"This is Wonder Woman. Was this thing square and similar to chocolate brownie?"

"Yes. He fou..." Conner was cut short by wonder woman.

"This is bad. How much exactly did he eat?"

"He found a package that contained one square. He ate whole thing in one bite."

"This is beyond bad. Listen carefully. This was ambrosia, the godly food. Mortal bodies can't withstand the power in it. He is burning inside. Try to keep him cold. I will try to find Percy. He might be able to help. Wonder Woman out." With that the connection was cut. Conner tried to call anyone else, but there wasn't anyone that knew how to deal with that type of stuff.

* * *

**Jump City  
September 8th, 12:46**

After she ended the call, Diana dropped her civilian disguise and flew at her top speed to the hotel Percy was staying. She practically smashed the entrance doors when they did not open fast enough, but she calmed herself down enough not to do so. Receptionist and guards immediately felt uneasy seeing an Amazon in such state. She was not angry, but rather extremely distressed. Diana knew that if Wally died because he ate Percy's ambrosia, demigod would never forgive himself for that. Nor would the others probably. The tension was already high.

"Excuse me Miss, but I must ask you as to what is the reason you cam..." He did not have time to finish, because she already opened the doors to the staircase and flew up. None of the present guards dared to even get close to her.

She was thankful that Nyssa was kind enough to write the room number or she would have to deal with this receptionist and it would take time. It was luxury she did not have. The press will have their breaking news though... She ignored that thought and walked to the door. There was no doorbell obviously, so she knocked. It might have been because she was still in hurry or because she was worried with Wally, but instead of creating a sound like normal knocking would, she intead created a hole in the doors. They more or less shattered into several pieces in place where she placed her hand. Almost immediately, she was greeted with a pointy end of a trident.

"Seriously? I am really getting tired with all this assassins. Can't you give up? I want one day of rest and relaxation." It was Percy's voice, but he sounded really... bored. He wasn't worried one bit about the fact that someone broke the doors to his room.

"Percy! It's me, Diana. I need your help and I need it now." She heard a lock open and the doors opened. In front of her now stood Percy. He was wearing his usual blue hooded jacket and worn-off jeans. The only change was that now except of the belt that held his pants up he had another one, more loose.

"Oh! Sorry Di. I did not expect you or anyone from the League. Batman made it clear that I am not wanted." He scowled.

"That is not true. The arrogant Bat doesn't represent the views of the whole league. But that isn't important right now. I need your help fast. Wally ate a square of Ambrosia." This caused Percy to shift from angry to disturbed in a snap.

"Alright. Lead the way, but we must hurry. I fear we will still be late." He started running toward the staircase. Diana caught up with him and when they arrived there, she picked him up and lifted him bridal style to get him down faster. He was not happy but also he was too worried to care. "How could I be so stupid. I should have known better than to leave godly food just laying around..."

"Don't beat yourself now. You will have time later. Now it's important to get to him before he dies." They arrived at Jump City Zeta tube which was located in one of the small yard between two houses. The graffiti opened to reveal a large metal tunnel.

* * *

_Recognized Wonder Woman 0-3, Neptune B0-8  
_

They were both greeted by panicking Team. Kaldur was having video conversation with Mera and Conner tried to get Zatarra on the line. Robin was talking on the phone with Doctor Sandsmark, but she most likely wasn't really helpful considering that words he was screaming at her shouldn't be known to an adult, much less twelve years old aspiring superhero.

"We are here. Where is he?" Percy asked while at the same time doing his best to calm down his emotions before there will be a major earthquake in Maine.

"In the infirmary. But it's really bad. We managed to stabilize him, but he is still getting worse. It's like Cassie all over again. Doctor Sandsmark is not able to help." Megan said, trying to get over robin cursing at Helena.

Percy did not answer, but instead dashed to the room. Rest of the heroes abandoned what they were doing and ran after him, but none of them was really able to match his speed (except for maybe Diana, but she stayed to make one more call). They arrived to see him standing over unconscious KF covered in ice bags. He was strapped to his bed so that he wouldn't hurt himself more. The energy pulsing from him was so strong that Percy could sense it as soon as he entered the room. He summoned his trident and focused on this the energy. He tried to control it, but it was nothing like the currents of power he felt with Cassie. Instead, his body generated this energy and it was burning him from the inside. The sheer fact that he was still alive was an achievement. Percy tried again and again but it didn't work. In a fit of rage he hit the floor. A small spring of salt water appeared, but Percy froze it so it wouldn't distract him. He focused on the energy one again. He could feel the pulses going out. _Not pulses. Waves!_ Percy suddenly remembered what his father said to him. " _Waves cannot truly be controlled. But you can guide them, shove them into right direction._ " Instead of trying to force his will on the energy, he focused on where he needed it. A road it should take. Instead of trying to control it, he gave this energy an easy way. He guided it straight to his trident. He felt renewing power of the ambrosia go through the trident and by extension though him. Finally, the waves stopped. Percy felt great... for about three seconds when he noticed that Wally was barely breathing. He could sense the life energy slowly sipping out of him.

"He is still dying..." He muttered. The rest entered the room now and noticed Percy standing over him. The IV showed that his heart was barely working. Percy contemplated using Apollo Pill, but he still had some of Hera essence inside him so that could kill him, or worse. If he triggered some super-nuclear explosion by mixing two godly essence it would end badly.

"Ambrosia burned him from the inside. To spread, it must have traveled through his veins. His blood was the most damaged part. He needs transfusion now!" Artemis tried to keep her head cool, but Percy noticed that she was panicking the most.

"He is B negative. None of us has that type of blood..." Robin said with resignation in his voice. "And we won't be able to get to the nearest hospital."

"Isn't there a supply in the Cave infirmary?" Conner asked.

"No. It was supposed to be refilled after we moved in, but it is still empty." Kaldur explained with mostly calm voice. He was still shaking.

"My transformation is done on cellular level. I could try and change my blood to match his, but I can't focus enough to to it..." Megan was close to crying as she watched Wally's life escape him slowly.

"I am 0 negative. That should work. I am universal donor."

Everyone looked at Percy. Diana wanted to say something, but Artemis was faster. "Then what are we waiting for?! We must save him!" She screamed with all illusion of calmness gone.

"It's not that simple." Diana finally got a chance to speak. "Percy's blood is half-ichor. The transfusion might not work."

"It's better than nothing." Artemis retorted. No one else protested.

After everything was done, Percy drank some nectar to regenerate. Now, all that was left was waiting.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To clarify: Nyssa wanted to use Percy to kill her father. She hates Ra's for abandoning her. She is not magician, only learned one powerful spell. She manipulated Cheshire to get Percy to the place of ritual. The pills will NOT appear often. I have plans for this to be more than one Fanfiction and through entire series they will be the last last possible tool. Also, Wally plot will be extended. Hope you liked it. Don't forget to review.


	9. Bank of Perez

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Y'all really thought Wally's gonna get a boost from all of this? NOPE!

**Mount Justice  
September 8th, 23:32**

_After everything was done, Percy drank some nectar to regenerate. Now, all that was left was waiting._

He decided to stay in the infirmary just in case Wally got worse. At first everything seemed to be normal, but after not even a quarter his state worsen off even more. His natural regeneration kicked in and speedster tried to fight this, but at the same time his whole body radiated with energy. This time, it was not like before. His organism was literary shining and crackling with golden lightning. Speed force was crashing with divine energy and both were devastating his body while doing so. It seemed like both tried to reform him, recreate him in different ways. Percy constantly tried to suck the conflicting forces, but his trident kept overheating. After the crisis was dealt with, different leaguers like Flash and Zatarra came to the Cave, but none could do much. Zatarra used his magic to continue sucking the additional energy when Percy had to rest. Wally should have already been healed, but conflicting energies kept devastating him. Nothing seem to work in the long run.

At some point Percy had to take a longer break. His trident was so overheated from constant sucking energy only to release it in the air that when Percy accidentally touched the metal wall with it, said wall melted. He decided to call doctor Sandsmark who fancied herself expert on all things mythological.

"For the last time. I have no idea what to do!" She screamed through the phone.

"But there must be something. He is getting torn apart by conflicting forces. From what we established, Speed force is trying to heal him while my blood inadvertently mixed with some of ambrosia magic is doing the same, but in completely different way. The two energies conflict and he is only being more and more devastated." Percy explained.

"And what do you expect me to do exactly? It's not like I am a child of Apollo to heal him. It was stupid of you to give him your blood. It only made things worse."

"If I didn't, he would have died. When draining the ambrosia, I at the same time took away his speed force for a time being. His natural healing did not work."

"But now it does... You must replace his blood! Whole thing. One hundred percent. Once there is no more divine energy, speed force will kick in!" Percy could hear doctor scream with excitement. She was like Annabeth when she solved a really difficult problem. It hurt him, but not as much as it used to. He was finally getting over her choice. Percy ran as fast as he could back to the infirmary.

"We need more blood. Much more!" He screamed at them. "All his blood needs to be replaced!"

"Why?" Kaldur asked in confusion.

"Hello Megan. It's Percy's blood that is causing this. If we remove it from him, Speed force will heal him. But you can't just remove all the blood. We must replace it! That is brilliant!" Megan caught the idea first.

"I am going to the nearest blood bank. Back in a flash" There was a zoom and flash was gone to get supplies. Percy smiled weakly. This guy joked in face of tragedy. Definitely he got some style. Awaiting his return, the team set up all the machines. The container for Percy blood was reinforced with several spells. There was no telling what it would do now that the divine energy was destabilized. Percy observed as the team worked together to save their friend while himself he kept draining excess energy to buy them some time. He could sense that with each drain he became both stronger and weaker. _Come on Wallman. You can do it. Don't give up now._

When he returned, he was wearing a backpack with insignia of the blood bank in nearby city. He wanted to make a witty comment, but the team jumped at him and took the backpack.

"Just to be safe I took 6 litters. It should be enough to heal him, right?" Flash asked. He was worried sick and couldn't think straight. He blamed himself for not being here faster. If he was just faster, he might have got here in time to help Wally when he needed transfusion in the first place and then KF would survive and probably already be up and running. Instead, he got late and could only observe how the two energies tore his partner apart. He was too distracted to think straight. He was a scientist for god's sake. He should have figured it out sooner. Taking away bad blood was one of the oldest known techniques in the world, and yet he didn't think about something so obvious.

When everything was done and the semi-divine blood was gathered in the container, everyone fell down. The adrenaline in their bodies slowly went away and exhaustion caught up with them.

"He is stable for now. Speed force is already regenerating his body, but he suffered major internal trauma." Martian Manhunter spoke. "I fear that even if he will return to health, his body will not be the same. His spinal cord, his muscles and bones... and especially his heart. It's all completely devastated."

The team and everyone present were speechless. No one wanted to believe it. Even if Wally did survive, he would be crippled for the rest of his life. Megan buried her head in Conner shoulder and cried. Artemis also cried, but alone in the corner. Robin left for the bat cave. He wanted to be alone. Kaldur was sitting there, trying to figure things out. In the end Aqualad was just angry at the fate of his comrade. Percy just punched the wall. Once. Twice. Trice. He wanted to continue, but then a hand on his shoulder stopped him. He turned to see Diana looking at him with understanding in her eyes.

"It is not your fault." She tried to comfort him, but this only earned a frown from him.

"Easy for you to say. It was my ambrosia that caused it. It was my blood that made everything worse. I almost killed him. If not for me, he would now be alive and happy."

"If not for you, he might have died in Bialya. If not for you, he might have died on some other mission. You have no way of predicting the future Percy. Don't think in 'what ifs' and 'maybes', because that won't change anything. What is done is done." Percy released some tension, but he was still angry and sad.

"You are right, but it's a fact that I caused this. Because of me his life will change for the worse and that is a fact." He hit the wall one more time and created a new doorway to the library. "Because of me, he is in this state and that is a fact. I decided to play a hero and this is where it got us. When I just lived my life and did not care about others I managed to capture five wanted criminals in three days. I am done. Done with the league. Done with the team thingy. Done with everything. I will now focus on my own thing and let everything else resolve itself. " With that Percy picked the container with his blood and left the room and used zeta tube to get away. He didn't trust the league (read batman) with this much unstable power. He didn't even trust himself with it.

Everyone was so focused on grief that none of them noticed small sparks of golden lightning jumping on Kid Flash.

* * *

It's been a week since incident with Wally. He was still in coma as his body tried to regenerate itself. He was moved to Star Labs in Central City to be monitored 24/7. He was stable, but even with his accelerated healing prognosis wasn't that great. His whole body suffered tremendous damage. His heart needed pacemaker to function properly and his internal organs were badly burnt and damaged. It was a miracle he was still alive at all. His muscles and bones slowly regenerated, but the biggest problem was his torn spinal cord. It was certain that he would be paralyzed from belt down. There was little hope for yet another miracle. The team kept visiting his room. Artemis practically lived there. Percy spent most of the time just beating up the criminals in Jump City. He was brutally efficient. Get in, swipe water, maybe give two hits if they tried to fight back. Media already speculated about mysterious superhero that appeared in Jump City, but he didn't care about the fame. Back in his world, Percy would find some monsters to kill to let out the anger. There were no monsters here, but muggers, rapers and kidnappers were replacements enough, only he didn't want to kill them. He still believed in second chance for them.

Assassinations attempts stopped. Not too many were willing to try anything after the news of KGBeast, Bane, Black Spider, Bronze Tiger and Nyssa Ratko made to the national television. Most of minor ones like detonator gave up and bigger fishes had to plan it all more carefully. It was obvious that this was like contract on superman. But whoever put out the bounty also knew that they needed more motivation so now the reward was fifty million dollars. Percy couldn't care less. He awaited them. He was constantly vigilant and eager to fight.

Cheshire disappeared. When he returned after the long night, he found her missing. At first he assumed that she just left to look for him, but she did not answer her phone. After few days without answer, he understood that she ghosted on him. Abandoned the contract and took the pre-paid five millions and disappeared like a Cheshire cat. He was tempted to look for her, but the betrayal stung too much. It felt almost like back after defeating Gaea all over again, only now he didn't know why. Sure they bonded a bit during this time together, but she was also an assassin, one he hired to help him survive long enough to deal with the problem. Also even if he wanted, he had no idea where to look for her. Somewhere deep in his mind, there was this sensation that she didn't want to be found.

Wonder Woman tried to contact Percy again to speak with him, but he completely ignored her. She had a major drawback: she couldn't breathe underwater so that is where he was hiding until his apartment was ready. Sleeping at the bottom of the bay sure was something new to him. He didn't need to create any bubble or anything. He contemplated going to Atlantis. He could live and blend there without any trouble, but he still had a mission. Just because assassin's laid low didn't mean they gave up. Innocent lives would still be at stake if he just quit. _Just like with the plane._

* * *

**Jump City  
September 20th, 15:47**

Right now, Percy was just wandering the streets of Jump City. He had to kill time before Night when he actually worked on the case. Since he was still not too big on technology, his way of finding information was more straightforward: beating the hell out of criminals up to the top. He started with simple drug dealers and robbers and worked his way up. Taking out a mobster or two while at the case was a nice bonus.

He was passing by the Bank of Perez when explosion followed by series of gunshots caused panic on the streets. It all came from the bank, so it seemed pretty obvious what was going on. A robbery. Percy stepped into some obscure alley and pulled out his mask. The moment he put the googles on and pressed the button on his belt his looks began to change. With metallic sound his armor unfolded and his face and part of his head got covered by blue and black metal. The standing out piece was bronze breastplate with trident symbol embed onto it. His mouth was now hidden behind plate of metal that changed his voice to make sure no one recognized him. It also made a quite scary first impression. Percy felt like it was more of a 'future soldier' vibe rather than superhero, but it mattered little to him for now. People would come around the first impression with time.

The building was stylized after Greek temple, with large dome on the top of triangle roof. _It's my first public appearance. Might as well give them a show._ He walked to the main entrance slowly, summoning his trident as he walked up the stairs. The water from his right gauntlet flew and slowly formed shape of three-pronged spear. After it had the desired form, the weapon solidified. First it was ice, then slowly it became golden and by the time he reached the top he was holding golden trident with shining teal gem in place where three blades connected to the shaft. In the back, Neptune could hear the incoming police forces. He also noticed that some people were taking pictures of him. It was his first official appearance and confirmation of week-long speculation.

As he reached the top, Neptune slowly approached the doors. He sensed large group of people inside, but one was standing next to the doors. He heard a sound of reloaded shotgun. Without giving them a chance to react, he kicked the doors, knocking the thug away. He walked inside, stepping on the shotgun that was still laying nearby and flattening it under his strength. Other robbers turned at him with guns, but no one fired. Neptune now had a chance to take a closer look at them. They all wore black leather jackets over green shirts with purple question marks on them. Each was armed either with shotgun or automatic gun. In the back he noticed a large group of people cowering. Three thugs were still aiming their guns in general direction of the group, but they also looked at him.

Percy's mind went into battle mode. Time seemed to slow down as he analyzed the surrounding looking at every possible leverage. In different circumstances he wouldn't care, but they had hostages and he was not gonna let them suffer. Before any of them had really chance to react, he shot several ice shards toward the goons nearby hostages. Each shard hit their gun, rending the firearms completely useless. The others opened fire, but Neptune skillfully deflected all bullets with his trident. Using his earthquake powers, he launched himself in the air and closed the distance between himself and the thugs. Before they comprehended what was going on, the hero used blunt end of his trident to knock out two them and the pointy end was just then piercing through weapon of yet another. He was turning to deal with remaining robbers, but just then gunshot could be heard and Neptune felt a bit of blunt pain in his back. More like a tickle than anything to go by. He slowly turned to look at what happened and saw that one of his enemies fired shotgun at him. Of course his armor stopped it from dealing any lasting damage, but it still hurt. Even without his armor he would be alright because he was now about as tough as superman, but it didn't mean he wasn't pissed.

"Huh?" Was all the thug said before he was rammed into the wall by charging hero. Others raised their hands in the air, seeing they don't really stand a chance. Neptune used water from his belt and gauntlets to form tendrils of water around him. As he walked, they pierced through every gun and effectively disabled them permanently. All the robbers gathered in one corner of the room. As he slowly approached them. They couldn't see his face or even his eyes. Without any prominent facial features he looked emotionless and his fighting style seemed ruthless but efficient. He really appeared more trained soldier than superhero.

Neptune caused water in the pipes under the floor to explode, covering the robbers in thick bubble so that only their heads stood out. He turned and did not pay attention to their screams as the bubble froze, leaving them literary on ice.

The bank director was first to come running to him. "Thank you sir, but this aren't all. Some went into vault!" He pointed toward now visible large hole in the back of the room. Previously, the hostages made it almost impossible to spot. _Either accident or careful planning._

Neptune just nodded silently to the words and dashed toward the way to the vault. Inside, he was smiling at how easy it all seemed. _Not even a minute and the robbers were gone. Rest of the band should not be much harder._

He landed in the devastated corridor at least four levels underground. The lights flickered and made it hard to see anything. The white and gray walls were now cracked in many places. He recognized, that most likely someone punched at them with great force, but when he compared his fist to the cracks, he disregarded this idea. This someone would have to have hands the size of his head. More likely they were using some blunt weapon like mace or maybe morning star. _But who was the target of this attacks?_ Neptune slowly sneaked toward the vault. Even if the robbers heard the sound of his fight, they still wouldn't probably expect him here so fast. As he approached the place, his life sense picked two auras. One was normal, but the other one really worried him. It had some godly presence to it. It was a bit similar to what he felt from Diana, but this one was more primal, more chaotic and more rough. It lacked the finesse and grace of Greek deities.

 _"Are you sure that this is the place?"_ Said some deep, deformed voice. It reminded Neptune of how his half-brother Antaeus whom Percy fought back in the labyrinth.

 _"_ Don't insult my intelligence you brute." Answered a squeaky voice. "I am perfectly capable of solving such a trivial riddles. There should be the symbol on one of this vaults!"

" _Then find it!"_

At this point, Neptune decided to step in. Carefully, not to alert his enemies beforehand, he sneaked toward them. Shadows in this place were too unstable because of flickering light to actually allow him to use this power, but he did manage to somehow get close enough to get visual without revealing himself to them. He was surprised to see a scrawny man in green suit filled with question marks. To complete the outfit, he also wore green bowler hat and carried a cane in shape of question mark. Neptune recognized him as Riddler. The real surprise was the source of godly energy. Arguing with Riddler was 7'3" humanoid hammer shark. His muscular hands were really size of Percy's head. He wore tight black pants and nothing more. His bare chest contained enough muscles to rival bane. Percy noticed that his feet, and by extend probably hands, were ended with razor-sharp claws. In the corner of the room, Percy noticed none other than famous-infamous Red Arrow laying unconscious.

The area itself was rather spacey. Circular room had nine vault doors, each decorated with some symbol. Neptune recognized some of them. There was definitely Doctor Fate, Red Tornado, Flash and something looking kinda like Green Lantern. Some other vault doors had different emblems that he could only guess also belonged to superheroes. Neptune did not have enough knowledge about history to be sure who they might have been or what is this place supposed to be or even why is it under this specific bank.

He was silently analyzing the place when suddenly shark-dude turned around and started sniffing.

" _I smell a demigod here. A male one at that._ " He said in his deep, slightly deformed voice.

"Glorious. Just glorious. Deal with him! I need a bit more time!" Riddler squeaked, trying to mask his fear with sarcasm.

" _Do not order me around!"_ Shark growled. He wanted to go and attack the demigod, but hero in question was now standing in the middle of passageway.

Tired of this seriousness, Neptune disabled the mask. In a zip, two parts retracted, revealing his mouth and part of nose. His headwear and googles now looked kinda like the ones KF wore. "Looks like it's time to start the party!" With that, he launched himself with great speed straight at Human shark. He wanted to take him out fast, but to his surprise the giant not only blocked his attack catching his fist mid-air, but also managed to punch him hard enough to dent his breastplate a bit. This actually surprised him. His breastplate was actually the only remaining piece of Celestial bronze armor he had. It was a parting gift from amazons, from their private reserves.

Changing the strategy, Neptune used the water to create several tendrils around his enemy and attack him at different angles. To his complete surprise, the water did attack him, but instead of dealing any damage, Percy could feel energy sipping from him through them and into the giant.

"Yes! Give me more strength so I can crush your skull easier!" Shark shouted and lunged at hero. Neptune dodged the punch and reciprocated with one swift smash with blunt end of the trident, followed by even quicker punch. Enemy was sent back for just a moment, but this gave Percy a chance to engage his 'battle mode'. Time seemed to slow down when his mind accelerated and started to analyze the situation. He noticed that now in front of Doctor's Fate vault was a spiral staircase leading down into darkness and Riddler was gone. It distracted him for a moment and created an opening for Shark. In the last moment, Neptune's subconsciousness kicked in and he dodged and countered. This time though, the giant held his ground. He made two more punches, but none could move the big pile of muscles even after they connected. Hero put more and more strength into each, but this guy had to be as tough as superman. Shark only laughed.

"That's all you've got? I've met clownfish stronger than that!" Shark held his hands wide open, awaiting another strike. This time, Neptune infused his punch with earthquake, which actually worked and sent the giant at least few feet back.

"Who are you even supposed to be? Hammerfish? Headbutter? Oh! I know! You escaped Sharkando look-a-like contest!" He mocked the shark while he tried to shake off the shock in which the last attack put him. Neptune did not give him time to do so. Instead, he capitalized on the advantage and launched himself again, sending punch after punch at the giant. At first, they were effective, but then Shark finally managed to dodge one of the attacks and grab the following strike which Neptune did not have chance to retract. Working on pure muscle memory, he fell right into a trap.

"I am King Shark! Son of Kamo, ruler of the seas! Who do you think you are to even challenge me?!" The giant screamed, before tossing hero into one of the vault doors. He managed to dent it a little bit, but luckily, they withstood the force.

While King Shark was gloating over his victory, Percy stood on the ground. He called his trident to him and activated his face mask back. "I am Neptune, son of Poseidon, the king of all the oceans and seas alike, the mighty earthshaker! I wield the Golden Trident, symbol of the rulers of underwater kingdoms. I am heir to all oceans and seas alike. Now instead of trying to boost your ego, fight me. If it gets any bigger it might not fit into the seas anymore." Neptune laughed behind his mask. His voice was a bit changed because of echo, but he did not activate voice changer.

The comment pissed King Shark beyond fury. With all the primal viciousness he lunged at the impertinent hero that dared to mock him, only to be met with strong punch onto his face. He could feel his teeth vibrating. In an instant, the primal demigod was knocked out cold. Neptune ran to unconscious Red Arrow. He spilled some water on his face to wake him up.

"Ugh. What is going on? I feel like I was hit by a truck..." The archer opened his eyes. The moment he saw who was standing over him, he punched him straight in the mask. Of course, it did no damage whatsoever to the demigod, but Red Arrow's hand now hurt. "Get out of my face traitor." These words hurt Percy to the core.

"Traitor? I am not the one that ditched the team completely. I left, because I wasn't wanted, not because my ego was too high." His words were underlain with cold fury. Red Arrow tried to stand up, but pain exploded in his right leg. He fell back down with a _THUD!_

"Did you catch them? Where is Riddler?" He tried to change the subject to save at least some of his already wounded pride.

"Somewhere downstairs. I am going after him, but I wanted to check to make sure you are actually okay." Neptune answered with emotionless voice. Former Speedy wanted to say something more, but demigod stood up and was already walking toward the staircase. Instead he just whispered _Thanks_. He didn't know that Percy heard it and smiled slightly. Somewhere under all this pride and anger, there was some decent guy.

* * *

Percy walked down stairs. At first the passage was in rather good condition, but as he walked down, the scenery changed. Stairs were now carved in stone and the whole tunnel looked rather crude and chaste. There was no source of light, but Hades' blessing gave him some degree of dark vision. Combined with the light his trident gave, he could see quite well as far as the spiral stairs allowed. He noticed that they were spinning to the left, making fighting while descending a lot easier. Usually, such stairs were built to give defenders a natural cover and as such most were right-sided. This one was like it was made to stop someone from leaving, not help preventing enemy from entering. After what felt like at least half an hour for his demigod ADHD brain, the stairs finally ended. Neptune now entered small square room with portal (as in doorframe carved in rock but without actual doors) opposite to the stairs. Inside said portal were carved words in Greek:

_I always evolve, but never change. What am I?_

Neptune slowly entered the room, expecting Riddler to jump at him, but his life sense did not pick anything alive in here. Giving up, he instead walked toward the mysterious carvings. When he touched the frame, a small Greek _Delta_ shined at the very top. Symbol of Daedalus, the creator of the Labyrinth.

"Great. This place again..." Percy sighted. Memories of his previous travels through the damned corridors returned to him. Instead, he focused on the riddle carved on the portal. It took him some time to figure out, but then he remembered one of the talks he had with Annabeth back on Argo II. They were reminiscing those who died during Second Titan War.

 _"War might have evolved throughout history. Weapons of war changed, combat changed... but war itself doesn't change. It's always bloody, there are always loses on both sides and there are never truly any winners. Only those, who lost least."_ This was one of the wisest things he heard in his life. Strangely, this helped him cope with all the deaths. There was that bare truth that yet in unexplainable way calmed his emotions.

"You are War." Neptune said and doors shined. When the light died, there was now nothing blocking his way.

When he crossed the portal, he found himself in quite large cave, standing on a ledge. Down, there was only darkness that seemed to go forever. Further on the other side of the room, Neptune noticed another, larger ledge. Standing there was Riddler with his back turned. He also noticed a golden gleam behind the villain. Neptune had no way of getting to the other side of the chasm. Using his termor jumps as he dubbed it was too risky because he could bring down the whole cave and he had too little trust in his hurricane flying to try it. He looked around the ledge, paying closer attention to details. _Riddler had to get there somehow. If only..._ When this specific thought was crossing his mind, Neptune noticed a small delta near the edge. He walked closer and as he approached, it started glowing faint golden light. Inside, Percy was starting to feel deep hatred and rage the closer he got to the letter... or to whatever Riddler was holding. When he touched the symbol, suddenly a narrow stone bridge appeared in front of him. It wasn't like it came, more like darkness surrounding it left and revealed what was there all along. The bridge itself was wide enough for one person to walk freely with a little bit of care. It had no safety railings or anything of that kind and it extended from one ledge to another in straight line, with little to no support. Let's just say it did not add to it's trustworthiness.

The moment rock bridge appeared Riddler turned around. Only now Neptune could see what he was holding. It was strange black helmet. The basis was similar to hoplite one, but it was more crude in design. Instead of smooth bronze he was used to seeing in Camp Half-Blood, it looked like someone melded multiple plates of metal without much care for effectiveness. That or helmet went trough tough times. What stood out the most were two sets of horns on the sides of it. Together with how metal plating connected with each other, it all reminded Neptune of a Dragon. He was also sure he seen it somewhere before, but couldn't catch a grip on this specific memory. He also started to feel more and more rage. Percy remembered how gods treated him. A tool to solve their problems or a toy to play with when they were bored. Memories of all the times he suffered because he persistently stayed loyal to them flooded his mind. Then, like a flow of a river his anger instead focused on Justice league. They constantly treated him like he was inferior. Like he was somehow worse because he wasn't from their world. He had more experience than any Leaguer out there. _Except for Diana._ This thought broke the chain. He remembered how she treated him. Not like an inferior, but like fellow demigod. She was what he expected from the league. He wanted no praise, only enough respect to be equal. He felt a bit like when Hera's essence traveled through him. Like a spark, this weird charm was gone and he regained the ability to think clearly. He shook his head to allow last of the charmed thoughts to disappear and started to approach Riddler. The villain panicked as he saw hero coming to him and frantically looked for some exit.

Neptune was getting closer when he heard a voice coming from the helmet Riddler was holding. It seemed familiar, but at the same time completely foreign. " **Put the helmet on and you won't have to worry about this _hero."_ **Before Neptune got close enough to do anything to stop him, Riddler followed mysterious' voice advice and did as told. Immediately, he was covered in red and yellow flames. They passed though his whole body, creating an armor similar in design to the helmet itself. It was all crude and deformed by the very fire that created the plates. In front of Neptune now stood a warrior in black armor still burning in some places. His whole body was protected by at least one layer of dark metal. Gauntlets were clawed and had spikes on knuckles. Wrist guards were made of several intersecting plates, each ended sharply and pointed back to the elbow. Shoulder pads were simple and didn't stood out, but he noticed that each had an Omega symbol etched in it which glowed with faint red light. The same symbol was on warrior's chest and knee guards. Lower part of leg was guarded with elements similar to the ones on his wrist, only bigger. He wore a kind of armored skirt similar to one seen in Greek and Roman armors sometimes, only much heavier. Overall armor seemed impractical with some solutions. Percy noticed that it greatly limited mobility of the wearer. There was also one more thing: under the helmet instead of Riddler there was only fire. Finally, it hit him what it reminded him of. The helmet resembled head of a Drakon. The whole armor gave the Dragon vibe, but helmet was a giveaway. He put two and two together quickly.

" _ARES!"_ Percy screamed. For a brief moment, the anger returned to him with tripled strength until he managed to overcome this aura. Now he knew what was happening just moments ago. It was the same effect Ares had on him whenever he was close. The sheer blood lust and unconstrained fury.

" **Well... Well... Well... If it isn't the punk who wanted simple life. How is it going eh?"** Ares chuckled. It took Percy all the self control he could muster not to jump at him immediately. But he remembered that by Ancient Laws Ares couldn't attack him without provocation, so he decided to play his game.

"I could ask the same. I heard ol' thunderass got even more paranoid. Tell me, how are things going?" This was supposed to get Ares angry, but instead Percy received only more laughter.

" **You think you are smart? Well look at that: this world has no fates, no Styx and no Poseidon to protect you. No ancient laws here. This means I can beat you in a pulp without worrying about anything. I am the only god out there. Not even the amazon bitch can beat me now."**

This actually caught Percy by surprise. He took a step back and readied his trident. "What you mean?" He managed to mask the fear gathering in him. The situation didn't really look that good for him. Sure he grew in power but to face a god at full strength? Maybe by the sea, not in dark cave. Especially Ares, who had it out for him. One thing was ensured: the God of War would not hold back.

" **Heh. Last time I was here, the fates still played their games and I was limited. They supported the amazon bitch and she actually banished me from this world. Good thing I left my helmet and my blades here. Now... Now I am free of any and all limits. I am free to do whatever I please and nobody can do anything to stop me. I think I will start with ripping you in half."** With that, Ares lunged at Percy with speed rivaling that of Superman. Two golden blades materializing in his hands in an instant. They each were one sided, with intricate design similar to that of flame. Handle was protected by extension of the blades.

Thinking fast, demigod raised his trident to block the attack, but the sheer force pushed him back a few feet. God of War proceeded with consecutive strike, each pushed Percy back even more. Every attack had enough strength in it to cut the Demigod in half, but they were all blocked in a nick of time. His combat reflexes kicked in and battle seemed to slow down a bit as his mind accelerated. Percy started to perceive more details. The golden blades seemed to change shape a bit with each strike, forming a different blade, but he didn't have a privilege to focus on that. Yet another slash was coming at him from the right. Percy braced his weapon and caught the sword between the prongs, using the momentum to launch himself. For a moment, he flew above the dark chasm before he regained footing behind Ares. Percy wanted to use this advantage and strike his back, but with almost impossible agility God of War blocked his attempt with second blade. This caused demigod to loose his footing for just a brief moment, but it created enough of an opening for Ares to hit him with pommel of the other sword. The impact was weaker due to weird angle (Attacker still had his back turned on Percy and thus couldn't hit him with all the might), but it was enough to cause him to stumble to the right. He felt his right foot slipped and Percy almost fell into the chasm if he didn't kneel and support himself on the trident. Ares turned around and saw Demigod on his knee.

" **Begging for mercy so soon. Pathetic. I see now why she chose godhood over you. Why everyone abandoned you."** He proceeded with kicking him with armored boot to the face, causing him to fall on his back. The pain and impact made him let go of his trident, which fell into dark chasm. " **Weak! Useless!"** Another kick crushed at least three ribs. " **You couldn't even save your mortal friend. Why are you pretending to be hero? You are just a punk desperately looking for a friend. And once you find one, you can't keep them!"** Ares lifted Percy in the air and choked him. Demigod could feel cold, clawed gauntlets tear into his neck and small droplets of blood fall on the ground. " **Face it! You are the reason they suffer."** Suddenly, Percy's mind was filled with images of the team grieving.

First, he saw Dick in the batcave. he was constantly punching a bag hanging from a ceiling. His fists bloody red. His face that of rage and sadness. There were some traces of tears, but they were long gone, mixed with sweat pouring from him. " _Why must he'd come? With his demigody food. If not him, Wally would still be walking. Then he volunteered for transfusion. Miss M could change her cells to match Wally's blood, but no, he had to be a hero."_ After each sentence, Dick sent another, stronger punch. Finally, he ended with roundhouse kick that sent the bag flying away, torn apart and spilling sand all over the gym section.

Next was image of Aqualad. He was sitting in Mount Justice shower room, all heads turned on and creating watery mist. Even with all of it, the tears were clearly visible. Kaldur was cowered in a corner. He didn't say anything. His eyes were closed. It was exactly what Percy expected. Silent mourning, away from others. That was what leaders did, tried to appear strong for the others. That is what Percy did so many times during war. He did it to protect the others. If they saw weakness in him they could stop seeing him as great and undefeated son of Poseidon that would lead them to victory no matter the circumstances. But in truth no one was invincible. No one was unstoppable. That was the hardest part. While Percy could always confess to Annabeth about anything, Kaldur had no one this close. Tula chose his friend. He believed he must be strong for the team and shouldn't show weakness in front of his mentor, so he closed himself. That was what would happen with Percy if he did not have Annabeth for all this years. That loneliness.

Scenery changed yet again, showing Conner and Megan. She was silently sobbing into his arm. It took Percy a moment to recognize where they were. It was Conner's room, but quite devastated. Almost everything expect of bed the two were sitting on were torn to shreds in blind fury. While Superboy was now calm, it was obvious he wasn't fine by any means. Just because he didn't cry didn't automatically mean he shrugged it off like it was nothing. Right now he held Megan in tight embrace, like he feared that something similar could happen to her. They sat in complete silence undisturbed the destruction. All that mattered was that they were there for each other. A small smile crept on Megan's face for a moment, but quickly disappeared, following by even more tears. Percy could only guess that she got angry for enjoying this short moment while Wally was still unconscious in the Star Labs.

Image changed one more time. Percy found himself looking at what resembled hospital room, only far more technologically advanced than anything he seen before. There was only one bed on which laid Wally himself, still unconscious. Next to him sat Artemis, holding his hand. She was crying too. "Ugh! Why did you have to be so stupid!" She shouted through tears. "So rash! Immature!" More Tears "Chivalrous! Cute! Funny!" Artemis seemed not to notice the change. Words just kept flying from her mouth. "Always the hero first. And now look where this life got you. My mother was right. This life of cape and mask if nothing but risk and no reward..." She let out more tears. "And I didn't even have a chance to really get to know you. Sure you were irritating at times. Pretentious and crushed hard on M'gann, but you... you... AGH!" She screamed and stood up, letting go of his hand. "What am I even doing?! Crying myself over a boy I barely knew, who constantly irritated me..." But both she and Percy knew this wasn't true. While Wally pissed her from time to time he was also the one that saved her in Bialya. While distrustful at first, they slowly warmed up to one another. Deep down she felt that if given enough time, the two of them could bond, develop something more than just friendship. He was also quite good looking. She sat back at the chair and extended her hand to grab his again. When she intertwined their fingers she could almost swear that he reciprocated and also closed his just a bit. A small smile appeared on her face before more tears came.

After that, Percy saw Red Arrow brutally beating criminals in Star City. When Green arrow confronted him about his methods, Roy just scowled and left without a word. Ollie wanted to chase after him, but he just stood there with resignation and sadness on his face. This hurt demigod most. This was like watching himself. Watching Diana's face when he was leaving. This sadness. This willingness to do something and lack of idea how to approach things not to stain the relation even more. This was the face that parent made. Ollie really cared about Roy just like Diana cared for him.

The scene started to change again, Percy gathered all his strength and kicked Ares. This caused God of War to let go of him. Visions stopped and Percy managed to stand up. He was still weak and his rib cage hurt him. Taking advantage of the fact that Ares was still confused, son of Poseidon drank some nectar from the vial in his belt. Energy surged though him, diminishing the pain. It would still take some time for the ribs to heal and moving still hurt, but now at least he was able to act. He tired to summoning his trident, but he couldn't muster enough energy. Negative emotions clouded his mind causing water to fall apart and splash on the ground.

" **How? How did you break free? The pain should shatter you."** Ares screamed summoning his blades back. In ditch attempt to have any chances, Percy drew Riptide, which he carried in his belt. " **It doesn't matter. I will kill you and you will join all the others you let down. You should have died years ago, but other sacrificed for you."** Ares attacked with newfound fury. " **Bianca! Zoe! Castor! Silena!"** He kept shouting names. Percy's grip on Riptide weakened when he heard their names, but he kept fighting. **"You know, how many of my children died because of you? I could name them all, but you wouldn't even know. You don't care about big picture. You care only about your friends. You could have ended it, but you constantly chose to let others die in your place!"** Ares kept striking and pushing him back. Finally, when he got Percy at the wall with nowhere to run, he rose both swords over his head. The two blades merged into one large sword that started to burn with golden flame. When the blade fell down Percy had no area to dodge so he rose riptide. The two blades met and with loud CLINGE! Riptide shattered to pieces.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ares will be mix between the DC and PJO one regarding his personality. His armor was partially inspired by the one from Wonder Woman movie and partially by dragonbone armor from skyrim. Sue me, but imo it suits him.


	10. New Arrival

Riptide shattered. A large explosion pushed both Ares and Percy back. While the first one stumbled few feet back and was now on the edge of the rock ledge, the other got thrown into wall so hard he created cracks and caused some rocks to fall. The whole cave was one strong punch away from falling down. The bridge on which two warriors fought just moments ago was now chipped in many places and looked really fragile now. It was a miracle or magic that it didn't shatter already. Same could be said for the ledge. Cracks were going on. If fight carried on, both participants could quickly find themselves tumbling down the darkness, which brought Percy some unhappy memories of Tartarus. Memories he did not want to relive. Ever!

Explosion itself was not the only effect of Riptide being shattered. Now in place where it happened was a swirling pillar of energy. The celestial bronze parts floated in the air and slowly dissolved into light blue-ish mist. Both Ares and Percy watched the whole ordeal in silence, too intrigued or stunned to act. The mist circled the pillar, slowly being sucked inside. At first the bright light made it impossible to see what was really happening inside, but the shine slowly died to reveal body of a woman laying in place of the combat. She had copper-colored skin and long, dark hair weaved into single braid going over her shoulder and reaching up to her waist. The woman was also completely naked. Percy couldn't see her face, but she seemed familiar. Ares was first to actually speak.

" **What is this? What is she doing here?** " He seemed very confused at the whole thing. " **Doesn't matter. I was planning on ending you punk anyway. She will serve as a nice... reward**." Even under the flaming mask of the helmet Ares wore, Percy could see the sick, twisted grin. This gave him new energy. His inner hero kicked in. Demigod jumped and stepped in front of the woman, summoning his trident and grabbing it firmly with both hands. He locked his gaze on the enemy not having chance to see who he was even protecting. The god of War gave him a small chuckle. " **Ah. Always a hero, eh punk? It changes nothing. You can't win**."

Percy thought quickly about his situation. His mind still in battle mode, but it gave little advantage given how fast Ares acted. It was different from when they battled all this years ago at the beach. Back then, while still one of the toughest opponents Percy faced, Ares was much weaker than this. It was like back then he was holding back, underestimating him. _And back then I had a sea next to me..._ Right now the god of war was going on in full. While Percy got much stronger, Ares used everything on his disposal. But there was more to it. It seemed like he changed. Gone was the dumb brute and in his place came a trained soldier. While still cruel and somewhat ignorant, this Ares was definitely more intelligent. He didn't rely on pure strength. There was some tactic behind his style. The terrain was also to his disadvantage. Not enough water close enough to actually do anything. _But many rocks right here!_

"You are right." This actually surprised the god. He expected and hoped that Percy would fight till the end. While executing him was still fun, it was also disappointing. But there was more. The way he said it meant there was more. After brief pause the demigod readied himself. "But I can make sure you loose. I can bring the cave down and send us all down. Me and her might die, but at least I will take you with me!" To prove his words, Percy twirled the trident so that he could easily plunge it into one of the larger cracks. The top of three-pronged spear started vibrating with tremor energy.

" **You're a fool Perseus. I will flash myself away. You will accomplish nothing except killing yourself and her.** " Ares summoned his twin golden swords. They now burned with red flame.

"Maybe, but it is better than whatever you prepared. I am ready to face Uncle H." Percy tried to bluff himself out of the situation like Annabeth did so many times, but deep down, he made peace with his decision.

Ares only chuckled again. " **Maybe so, maybe not. But you definitely will change your mind once you see who you are really protecting. I am sure of it.** " His tone was dripping with satisfaction. He was enjoying it very much.

Demigod doubted for a moment, expecting this to be a trap or distraction. Finally, he gave a quick look over a shoulder, ready to act on instinct. When he looked woman in the face, he froze completely. Every single muscle in his body, including heart, stopped responding. Behind him laid Zoe Nightshade. Former Hunters and lieutenant of Artemis, daughter of Atlas, who died during battle on mount Othrys. She was then placed in the stars by goddess of the hunt herself. It was not possible, and yet she was here. Zoe was one of this deaths that haunted Percy. He believed that if he did better, he could have saved her. If he didn't foolishly charge the titan, they could have all survive. Instead, he could take the sky faster and let Artemis deal with the enemy. He could trick Atlas. Or maybe even reason with him somehow. But he was rash and over his head. Too worried about Annabeth to consider others. _To save a friend, you would sacrifice the world..._ He was blinded back then. But now he had a chance to repair at least some of the mistakes he made. Fix at least one. He had to save her. There will be time to investigate how it was possible later on.

With even more determination Percy looked at Ares. Thinking quickly, he pulled a box of pills from his belt. The situation was desperate enough to take last of the last resorts. With a tinge, lid lifted to show thirteen different symbols with pills laying in separate sections. He had to act fast. Ares of course recognized what he was doing. He roared in anger and jumped at the demigod before he had an actual chance to use the greatest gift gods ever given to a mortal besides immortality. It contained their very essence. He could access the full power of a god, an Olympian at that, without any limitations like ancient laws. It was supposed to be their ' _apology'_ for lying to him and sending him into the action. Not even he knew fully what they were apologizing for and what they did, but it soon wouldn't matter. He would kill the whelp before he could use it.

Acting on an instincts and in panic, Percy used his hand that still held vibrating trident to plunge it into the wall. Immediately, the whole cave shook. Rocks started falling. Ares got to him less than a second later, but the deed was done. In anger, the god of war tried to cut demigod in half, but his opponent managed to block the strike with trident and push him back. More debris came down, smashing the bridge into pieces that fell into dark chasm. They were now stranded on this small ledge. Under the helmet, Ares gave a sly grin. Instead of continuing the assault, he instead chose to plunge both of his swords into the ground they were standing on. With a CRACK!, it all shattered. " **Have a nice rest of your life punk! I hope you will die long and painful death buried under this rocks!"** And in flash of bright golden light with a tint of red, Ares was gone.

Percy didn't have time to think closely on this words. He had to do something. He could try and hurricane-fly himself and Zoe out, but he was too drained. The whole ledge was slowly cracking. Each move only sped up the inevitable. _Think Percy! Think! This won't end today. I swear on the river Styx!_ Even if it was all in his thoughts and Styx had nothing to say in this world as far as he knew, it didn't matter. He was dead serious on keeping onto his promise.

His trident was only source of light in the room. Everything else was covered in thick darkness. It didn't really bother him. One of the boons of Hades blessing was that he could see in darkness like it was dimly lit. He still had the box, but he couldn't think of any god who could give him the right power for the job. Hermes could help him if by travel he would really be able to teleport, but something told him that it would only be super speed at best. Zeus power would let him fly. That might have been the best option. He could also just use the Hades one and at least greet his uncle owing him a favor. _SHADOW TRAVEL!_ In his current stage it would drain him to the point of near death or he would just fade into shadows. He needed to go somewhere close. Ideally, he would travel to Themyscira, but it was half-a-world away. There was no way he would survive. Mount Justice was also off. While quarter is less than half, it was still traveling entire continent in one jump. His home was still not ready and his impromptu sleeping place at the bottom of the ocean wouldn't hold him. There was one more place, but he was sure it would piss the person off. Roy had safe houses in every major city and Percy just so happened to know where his Jump City one was located. Redhead superhero would definitely be really angry if/when he found a naked woman and passed out demigod in place where he would go once he escape this place. But he couldn't figure any other option. He really really really didn't want to use the pills. They always left this weird sensation and gods essence actually influenced his personality. Torturing Nyssa was something he regretted afterward, but when he was doing it, there was this sense of fulfillment in him. Like vengeance was what he really wanted.

"Might as well start burning before fading into shadows." Percy popped two vials of Nectar to regain as much energy as possible before picking Zoe bridal-style and doing his best not to look at her. It was hard to not stare, but he managed. Instead, he focused on imagining the shadow of abandoned apartment Roy used as a safe house. He tapped into shadows and melded with them, slowly feeling his essence disperse and become one with darkness, only to reform in completely different scenery.

* * *

**Western Mongolia  
** **September 21, 03:16**

Vandal savage was sitting in his base under mountain. His plans were slowly being set in motion, but Justice League and their sidekicks managed to at least to some extend delay his plans. And there was Perseus. This young man, barely an adult, managed elude the light. Not only that, but he put at least some of the strongest assassins in prison for a time being. He had to rise the bounty fivefold to actually keep the attention of big fishes. His plans for the demigod went beyond just killing. He wanted to get him to finally join the light. But first, he had to estrange him to the league and show him the truth. From his sources, the man was a war veteran and hardened warrior. Vandal honestly believed he could win over the Demigod if he worked hard enough. But in the meantime, he could reap other benefits from arrival of this stranger named Perseus.

Just as he was about to call Riddler on an update about project in Jump City, a flash or golden light engulfed the room. When it died, there was another man with Savage. He wore black armor and horned helmet. Strapped to his belt was a single golden sword on intricate design. The characteristic element was an omega symbol present on both the sword and in several places on the armor.

" **Vandal Savage."** The voice boomed with might and power. There was also a tinge of withheld anger, but it seemed distant. " **I learned it was you who I have to show gratitude for being here. You sent this pathetic joke of a man to find my tomb."** Savage stayed completely cool, seemingly unaffected by newly arrived guest's power.

Finally, he spoke. "Yes. It is good to see you old friend."

" **Likewise. Heh. I wonder what took you so long."** Ares chuckled before summoning himself a throne to sit on. Not a chair, a full fledged throne. It was less impressive than his throne on Olympus, but still beautiful and majestic. It was made of black marble, decorated with various weapons sticking out in different directions. The armrests were coated with red silk under which there was a soft pillow for his hand to have a comfortable rest. In the crown of the seat there was a large ruby burning with black flame, surrounded by names of greatest generals to ever live. One of this names was Vandal Savage.

"Well, the amazon made sure your tomb was beyond reach of anyone really. The whole complex was buried, coated in so much protective magic that not even Klarion could find it, not to mention brute-forcing through it. It was the arrival of Perseus that allowed me to find you. The day he arrived there was a series of energy spikes all around the world. We think every artifact of the Age of Gods responded to energy he carries. I am sure you know Perseus, given he is son of Poseidon." Vandal spoke, not really revealing too much emotions. While he knew Ares for a really long time, he still was wary. The god of war had different opinion on multiple very crucial matters like human life for example. He did not trust him at all. But at the same time he both owed him and could use someone that could rival the power of Doctor Fate or Klarion. This could tip the scales in his favor in the long run.

" **I do. Or rather I did. The stupid whelp had to die for humiliation me and my children suffered at his hand."** Ares' tone was filled with more anger, but there was also satisfaction and contentedness. Thus, it was even harder for Vandal to break the news to his ally.

"Sadly it seems he managed to cheat the death and actually evaded your power. He is alive, albeit greatly harmed." Savage decided it was best to just bluntly tell the truth without coating it with sweetness.

" **WHAT?!"** Ares screamed. The whole room was suddenly filled with power and even if Vandal was accustomed and almost immune to aura of violence that surrounded the god of war, it flared with so much power that caveman got a sudden desire to kill someone. It lasted only for a moment, but now Savage had to be very careful with his words.

"Do not worry. He will ultimately meet his end. For now, I want to introduce you to a group of colleagues of mine. They share my vision on the world and are willing to pursue the dream of achieving it."

" **Fine, but I want the punks head on my plate."** Ares relented and followed Savage to different room.

* * *

**Jump City  
September 21, 08:33**

Roy was really tired and angry. After the battle he was taken to the hospital to have his leg fixed. Turned out it was only a sprinkled ankle, but still doctor told him to avoid jumping off the buildings for at least few days. As if! They still kept him for at least one night of observation to make sure that he was okay. Now, he just wanted to go to his safe-house and finally be free of pestering doctors and patients.

When he opened the door, last thing he expected was to find an unconscious naked girl next to unconscious (luckily fully clothed) Percy. He sighted. "Why does this type of things must happen to me..." With resignation, he went to the wardrobe and pulled out an extra blanket. He used it to cover the woman and then carried her over to the coach. "Once Percy wakes up he will have lots of explaining to do... He goes after Nygma, only to cause major earthquake and disappear, now it turns out he brought unconscious naked woman to MY safehouse. Couldn't he just go rent some motel? And of course he is passed out so I can't even properly slate him." Roy kept ranting while he looked for smelling salts in the first aid kit he kept there.

When he finally found it, there was another problem. Neptune's mask covered the whole face, leaving no possibility to actually give him the salts. Roy found out painfully that Percy indeed had an inbuilt taser. He was not willing to try and look for some button that would open the face-guard. That would be just stupid and could lead to more tasering. Instead, he filled a cup with water and splashed it onto unconscious hero. This actually worked and Percy started to slowly rise.

With his mind still clouded, Percy deactivated his mask and it retracted into pair of googles which he took down. Only then he actually took note of his surrounding. Seeing Roy's angry glare put him at ease. He was safe. Or as safe as one could be when a vigilante is staring daggers at you.

"You might want to explain why I find you and unconscious naked woman in my _secret_ safe house. I will let you know that I do not appreciate it being used as cathouse." Red Arrow growled. "Who is she even and why are you both unconscious?"

Instead of answering immediately, Percy pressed his buckle and his suit retracted into belt, leaving only the gauntlets. He also pocketed the goggles. Now he stood there in his two piece suit. "Sorry. I needed a place where I knew we would not be threatened why I regained consciousness. This was the closest one while my apartment is still under construction." Seeing Roy's puzzled look, Percy decided to explain. "I was completely drained after the battle. To get there I had to shadow-travel and it always drain me. I feared I might pass out gods know for how long so I needed to get to place where I could do so in peace. This was what I 'located' fastest."

Red Arrow just sighted. "And how do you even know this is my safe house" How do you even know I have a safe house?"

"Well... Wally might be a bit of gossip girl when he is bored." Percy gave innocent smile before a wave of sadness overcame him. "Sorry. It just..."

"No worry. I get it." Roy also had a solemn face. "He isn't dead. We should not treat him as such. He will wake up. He is really strong. WAIT! He gave you the address?"

"Nope" Percy said popping the 'p'. "But I dug a bit. While being on the run from world's top assassins one must be prepared. I hope you don't mind me staying here. How is your ankle?" He tried to change the subject. Roy gave him empty look before deciding to roll with it.

"Fine. everything's okay. Back to the subject who is she?" He pointed to unconscious woman on the couch, now covered with a blanket.

"Someone from my past. I thought she was dead, but apparently something brought her back and into this world. Small advice: we may wanna get her some clothes or she will rip our heads off." Seeing yet another puzzled look, he explained. "You met Amazons? She was part of what can be called extremist group among them regarding hatred for 'males'. Now you get me?" Roy silently nodded. While he only ever met three Amazons, two of them wanted to castrate him at some point. Instinctively, his hand went a bit lower to protect the vulnerable area.

"I think I have some spares in the wardrobe" He quickly jogged to the large wardrobe to get a set of clothes. Percy meanwhile walked to Zoe to see what state she was in. He didn't want to risk drinking another vial of nectar, remembering that he downed two before attempting shadow-travel, but he finally decided to take a risk and eat a square of ambrosia. Immediately, he could feel the rush of energy going through him.

Zoe was now covered shoulder to toes with a blanket, leaving only her gorgeous face and long dark hair visible. First, Percy checked for fever, remembering how it was with Cassie, but nothing. Then, he focused on his life-sense. This power was hard to describe for him. It wasn't like with x-ray vision Superman had. He didn't see in different spectrum. It also wasn't like super-hearing, because it didn't come in waves or change when he turned his head. The closest was sense of smell, but it also didn't fully describe what Life-sense felt like. It created a whole new layer of perception in his brain. A map that showed where energy was gathered. If he closed his eyes, he could visualize it. Percy then stood in complete darkness, with clouds of life in places where people stood of had stood. But he was seeing it all. In all directions at once and in all positions. It was truly magical. At the same time, it was a bit tiring like with all the powers he got from Hades. While control over water and earth came to him easier than walking, using the shadows was like running during storm. Doable, but not the easiest thing.

Zoe's life force felt strange. There was familiar feeling of the ocean to her like with all children of sea gods, but there was also something strange. She was firmly connected to this world unlike Cassie when she first came, but her life lacked something crucial. If Percy had more experience, he could guess it quicker, but it took him some pondering. Roy meanwhile pulled his old archer outfit. "You think she likes red?" Percy only gave him deadpan glare to which former Speedy only shrugged "Hey. I at least try to do something. Any idea what is wrong with her?"

"I'm not sure. When I came to this dimension, I instinctively found the trident to anchor me. When Cassie came, she needed to be bound with Diana to be able to freely function here. With Zoe I sense that she is hooked to the world and it's energy, but she lack something else. I just don't know what..." Roy knew about Percy being from different world. He kept tabs on The Team and met with his friends from time to time to catch up. And Wally was really a gossip girl from time to time. "I am wondering..." Percy summoned his trident and plunged it into ground. Immediately, sea water started to spring from the hole.

"How did you... We are on second floor. There are people living under us and sure as hell there is no water pipe in this place!"

While He directed the water to cover Zoe, Percy chuckled. "You know that myth about Athens. That Athena gave them olive tree and Poseidon created salt water spring? Well, turns out trident allows me to do the same anywhere I want really. I just need to be careful or might accidentally bring down something." After Zoe was covered Percy froze the source to prevent the neighbors from unexpected flood.

"And why did you bubble-wrapped her?"

"She is technically speaking a nymph of the ocean. I thought sea water might help her. But to be honest physically speaking I see nothing wrong with her. It's like her consciousness is not here or she is forced to be asleep by some curse." A chuckle came from Roy, but before he could make a comment Percy caught onto his way of thinking. "No way. I am not kissing her. It would get me castrated at best. At worst, I would end up praying that Assassins got to me first." This earned another round of chuckle from Red Arrow.

"So what do you suggest, Prince Charming?" Roy couldn't stop himself.

"Well... If something is wrong with her body, Nectar or Ambrosia could fix that. If it is a curse, then we might need to look for some help."

"We? I didn't agree to this. It's way above my pay grade..." Roy tried to back away, but Percy only smiled.

"Seriously? Mighty Red Arrow back away from a challenge?"

"Eh. You are right. I chose to be a hero so I guess I should help. So who are we bashing first?" Honestly, he would stay no matter what. He wanted to prove to the league that he is worthy of joining their ranks and it would look bad if he backed away.

"Hold your horses cavaliero..." Percy quoted some western he watched some time ago. "Let's see what I can do first." He pulled vial of nectar from his belt and poured it into her mouth, making sure she swallows it. She didn't react immediately, but after a moment her body started to absorb the water. "Huh..." Slowly, the bubble around her was drained and to their surprise she actually opened her eyes. "I really didn't expected this to work..." Was all Percy managed to say.

* * *

Zoe woke up confused. She had no real idea what was going on. Like all nymphs after she died she should have been reborn as something connected to nature, most likely some body of water, but her mistress bent the process making her into constellation. She quite enjoyed being on the night sky. She could observe the mortal world and relax. No more irritating males in close proximity. When the Second Titan War raged, she waned to go down there and help her sisters, but she could only watch. It didn't stop her from enjoying every single small victory. Anything happening under the stars she saw clear as the sky. Then the war ended. She could see how Perseus went against the gods, how he refused immortality to improve the lives of other demigods. She knew that there was another reason for it, her name Annabeth, but it was still noble thing to do. She was actually furious that gods did not keep to their end of the bargain and didn't release her sister Calypso. She really wanted to console her, but she couldn't she was a constellation.

Then came Second Giant War. The Gods had their personalities split and fought inside them. She also saw the seven traveling over the Atlantic. Every night, she spent hours watching Argo II. It was actually the most entertaining thing to do. Almost each night there was some monster attacking them. While she always cheered for demigods, she wished there was something she could do. After a while of being stars, she started to miss the action. The rush of Adrenalin, the unknown, the pain in the muscles as she pushed her limits. And the sweet taste of victory. For almost four millenia she served under Artemis as her huntress and now she had nothing to do in the sky. When the Seven finally arrived to Pillars of Heracles it was actually during day, so she could not witness the events, but she took great pleasure in watching for whole night how he tries to escape from giant pile of food, only for a giant wave to form and throw him back in the middle of it, head first. She was pretty sure it was some curse from Poseidon for upsetting his son. Of course, Heracles finally got so angry that he smashed every single fruit out there. Of course this got him all sticky and dirty and water did not want to clean him, which led to even more laugh at her side. This was truly best fun she had since Phoebe tried to prank new huntress that turned out to be Artemis in disguise. Poor girl was changed into jackalope for whole week. She was given to the real new huntress to be trained. Poor girl didn't know that this Jackalope was her fellow sister as Artemis told her that she was supposed to train this animal as part of joining the hunt. All the girls were forbidden from revealing the truth. Since that day no huntress ever got closer than ten feet to magic hair paint.

When the war ended, Zoe yet again witnessed the award ceremony. When Annabeth chose godhood over Perseus without second thought she wanted to jump from the sky and strangle the unfaithful girl. She got only male that was actually decent and she chose career over him. Somewhere deep there was this thought that no male should limit a woman in pursuit of her dream, but at the same time it was one of the things she detested the men for. She was a bit torn. Then came rest of the ceremony and she saw Percy just standing there, his face empty of any emotions. He was distant, seemingly not aware of what is going on around him. When he disappeared from this world, she bid him a silent farewell before turning her gaze somewhere else. She watched the hunt celebrate the victory and her mood immediately improved. She almost forgot about unfaithful Annabeth, girl for which Perseus traveled the whole country and abandoned godhood. Almost, because in the back of her head there was this one questions. ' _Who was right? Annabeth for chasing her dreams or Perseus because she chose her pride over him?'_

After Second Giant War ended, another prophecy was made. About daughter of Zeus that would topple her father on the day of her sixteen birthday. Of course to protect himself, the king of gods hunted his demigod children. Turned out he had a total of three that could match the criteria. Thalia, who he wanted to kill, but Artemis stopped him. Instead, he agreed to make her goddess of punk. Weird choice in Zoe's opinion, but she was actually happy. Thalia stayed with the hunt and fulfilled her role as lieutenant. Second was a really young girl, not older than three. Zeus took no chance. He sent a lightning on her and her mother, killing both on sight. Third and final was Cassie Sandsmark, daughter of Jupiter, the roman counterpart of the god of thunder. Before Zeus killed the young girl, her mother fled and hid from the gods, probably not without help of her grandmother Athena. While Zeus couldn't find her, it didn't stop him from releasing various monsters at them. One night Zoe watched as a large pack chased mother and daughter through the woods. She was completely powerless. Luckily, Poseidon came to rescue. The god then struck a deal with the mother. He and Hermes gave her a set of instructions and sent her to place where Zeus could never get them. She hoped they would find peace. There was also hope that Zeus would finally keep it in his pants, fearing for the consequences.

The peace didn't last too long. She found herself pulled from her place among stars somewhere unknown. She knew only that her very essence was transcending beyond known land. Beyond the land of gods. For some time, her consciousness managed to hold to the familiar stars, but she could feel that with each moment more of her remaining essence was being sucked. Finally, she felt a very familiar taste. Something she didn't have a chance to experience for a really long time. It was nectar being poured down her throat. She could feel a blissful taste of boar cooked over free fire. It was what she and her sisters in the hunt ate to celebrate victories or successful ventures. It was a taste of happiness. She finally allowed herself to follow this bliss, wherever it would lead.

* * *

Zoe sat straight, confused about where she was and what was going on around her. Luckily, the blanked she was covered in didn't fall down. First thing she noticed was that she was back on earth, in her own body. She could feel the soft blanket on her, comfortable sofa under her and taste of boar in her mouth. When the initial shock of returning to life passed, she took a more careful look around. She then notice a red-head man dressed in tight outfit with bow hanging over his shoulder. She wanted to take a closer look, but in the corner of her eye she noticed another man. Zoe turned her head to meet eye to eye with none other than Perseus Jackson, son of Poseidon. Immediately, she felt rage toward him. If someone asked her what she was angry for, she wouldn't be able to answer.

"Perseus Jackson! Explain to me this instant why am I here! I demand that..." Her yelling was interrupted when Percy instead engulfed her in tight, warm hug. Through her mind flew a single thought of castrating him, but it quickly disappeared. She just sat there dumbfounded, not knowing how to react. On one hand she should kill this male for daring to touch her, but it wasn't any male. It was Perseus, the only man she respected.

Percy acted on impulse, ignoring all of his instincts telling him that he will get castrated. He was just so happy to see Zoe alive. It was one of the death that he wanted to erase most. It was his foolishness that let to it. Indirectly, he was the one that caused her to die. And now she was sitting there, alive and well. He was so happy that nothing mattered. He wanted to make sure that she was real and it wasn't just some illusion. Just a twisted way for Ares to play him. But it was her. He could feel her life essence really being here.

"You still didn't answer my questions. Why am I here." She looked down and noticed that she is naked. "AND WHY AM I NAKED. I SWEAR ON THE RIVER STYX THAT IF..." Percy quickly let her go and interrupted her.

"Just let me explain. Short version is I had a fight with Ares and I was loosing. I tried to block his strike with Riptide, but he shattered the blade. Then the celestial bronze shards started to float and dissolve into mist. From this mist you came, butt naked and unconscious. I managed to get Ares to run away and then got you here." He explained as quickly as possible, his voice strangely higher than normal.

"That... was short. I will want to hear more about it later, but for now GET ME SOME CLOTHES!" She screamed at both Percy and the other man. Redhead handed her some outfit. It was red, short-sleeved shirt and red pants. There was also some underwear, but no bra. In front of her impromptu bed he dropped pair of large, yellow shoes that she could best describe as medieval. Zoe remembered wearing similar during the middle ages, albeit not in yellow color. There was also brown belt with multiple pouches and yellow leather gloves, but she did not want them. It would make her look ridiculous. "It might do for now, but I want proper clothes later. And who is this guy anyways." She knew she was being mean, but this whole situation was really weird. Not everyday you are pulled from being a constellation to arrive naked in some apartment and find two guys staring at you with confusion.

"This guy has a name. For now you can call me Red Arrow." Zoe really wanted to snicker at that, but she stopped herself.

"Okay. I won't judge. Now you two go to some other room so I can dress." Just then Percy finally noticed that Zoe stopped speaking in mix of old English. When he voiced his thoughts, she simply smiled. "When you spend five years in the stars you ought to do something. Learning proper English was one of this things.

"Looks like you have some storytelling to do yourself." Percy grinned.

"Later. Now begone. I want to finally dress and can't do it in presence of males. Unless you wish me to turn you into women the painful way." She threatened. Both men quickly vacated the room not wanting to loose their manhood just yet.

* * *

**Mount Justice**   
**September 21, 16:16**

Aqualad walked over to M'gann and Conner who were watching TV. Artemis did not visit the cave for some time and Robin was with Batman, training. And there was no word from Percy. Only the three of them remained in the cave now. At least until tomorrow.

"Listen. I just received a call from Atlantis. Turns out Garth and Tula will be joining us sooner than we thought. They finished all their stuff at the conservatory and will arrive here tomorrow." Aqualad was happiest since before the incident with Wally. While what happened to the speedster still pained him, he was really happy to actually see his friends. Tula may have broken his heart, but she was still his friend. Same with Garth. He made his choice and that was the consequence. He would have to live with it. It will be good to be reunited, to work and live together like in the good ol' days.

"So? This means they will arrive tomorrow, not today. We will greet them tomorrow." Conner answered bluntly. He was irritated that Aqualad interrupted his alone-evening with M'gann.

" _Hello Megan!_ We will throw them a welcome party. I will bake cookies, you can blow the balloons and Kaldur will get the decoration. I will call Dick to get him to bring some food when he get here after school." Megan already started planning the whole event, much to the amuse of Aqualad. Inside, Superboy thought that it was cute, but he didn't want to show emotions in front of others (that weren't miss M.)

"Fine. I will help."

"Tomorrow is gonna be a great day."

* * *

**Undisclosed location**   
**September 21, 20:29**

The leaders of the Light gathered on video-screens. They all answered call from Vandal Savage, who said he had urgent matter to discuss.

"I would like to formally introduce an old friend of mine. Some of you might know him." His voice was completely devoid of any emotion. "Ares. Welcome to the Light."

This statement caused quite a stir. While Klarion and Ra's Al'Ghoul had no problem with it, Luthor looked concerned.

"I think it would be wise to discuss such matter with us before you make a decision. It would be only fair given how Light operates." Inside, Lex feared Ares. He heard tales about cruel god of war slaughtering whole cities back in the ancient Greece. While in the past he wouldn't believe it, now the earth was traversed by God-like aliens, Meta-humans and literal demigods.

" **Do not fear, _Mortal"_** Ares accented the last word, giving a clear message on what he thinks of this " **If I've wanted to kill you, you would already be dead. I am here, because we have a common goal. Human evolution is driven by conflict. It is in battle that warriors become heroes. It is on battlefield where strongest bonds are forged. It is the will to survive that makes humans create new inventions. In times of Peace there is only stagnation."** His speech actually got attention of the members of the Light, including Luthor. " **I will help you ignite the fire that will guide humanity into better world."**

Behind his helmet, Ares smirked. He knew that he swayed the hearts of this mortals. They would serve him well for now. Then, he would get rid of them.

" _Wise words for someone who desires only slaughter."_ Another voice came into the room. Both Ares and Vandal turned around surprised. A man walked into the ring, letting himself be illuminated. He wore suit almost identical to the one Flash uses, but with Red and Yellow and Black and White inverted. His eyes were also bloody red and reminded Savage of true face of Klarion. " _But maybe that is what is needed..."_ Reverse flash laughed, before turning to the other members of the Light. " _But who knows what future really holds."_


	11. Homefront

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not too much Percy in the first part, but I wanted to return to main plot of the show. Also, Tempest and Aquagirl are coming! Let's get them a warm welcome and something to drink. We wouldn't want to get them dehydrated from all the heat, right?

**Mount Justice  
** **September 22, 18:33**

"Faster. They should be arriving in less than ten minutes!" Megan shouted at her friends. She really got into this whole 'party making'. They didn't know she could be this commanding.

"I am doing my best." Robin shouted back as he jumped from one stalagmite to another, attaching balloons.

Kaldur walked to her and put a hand on her shoulder. "M'gann. Calm. Down. Take a deep breath." The martian did as told and looked around. "It really looks great. I appreciate what you are trying to do here, but maybe let's not overextend..."

"You are right. Forgive me. It's just that..." She trailed off. "MY COOKIES!" She screamed and flew to the kitchen, only to meet with Conner who pulled the hot baking sheet with his bare hands.

"Got that covered for you." He sent her an apologetic smile when she noticed one missing. "What? I deserved a reward for saving all of them..."

Seeing the two together somehow warmed up both Robin and Kaldur. At least two aliens had each other.

Dick hated to interrupt the two love birds. "I think we should get to the main room and great them."

The team followed boy wonder to the main chamber. They were walking past the garage when a large wave of water hit them, knocking all four of them out.

* * *

Garth and Tula were both overjoyed that they would be joining a team of superheroes. Even more that they would be working side by side with Kaldur, their best friend. The zeta beam teleported them straight to the Cave where they would be staying. Two Atlanteans were greeted by flames and smoke all around them. From the shadows came more red-hot flames, but both teens managed to dodge it. Two aspiring superheroes managed to dodge all of the incoming attacks until wave of concentrated water hit them in the back. If they were land-dwellers, this amount of pressure would knock them out, but Atlantean physiology was accustomed to such conditions and they were merely pushed back.

"We are sitting ducks here!" Tula screamed. "Fighting here is pointless."

Garth silently nodded. HE watched as Tula focused her inner magic into a spell. Soon enough the splashed water all turned into mist and flew around them, covering them head to toes and making all visual based forms of tracking inefficient. The spell was designed to fool all types of sight, including heatvision, x-ray vision and ultraviolet vision. Taking advantage of the cover, both teens run toward the exit doors. Taking random turns once in a while to make it harder to be tracked. They were actually surprised with amount of narrow passages in there. Growing up in Atlantis where most corridors were wide and tall to accommodate for swimming, it was a bit claustrophobic for Tula. Garth also felt strange, but he shrugged it off. They were running not swimming.

Finally, after yet another turn they got into living area. In some places there were soaked or burned party decorations or popped balloons. The baking sheet laid on the ground surrounded by crushed, wet cookies.

"What happened here?" Garth whispered in the air.

"I don't know." She then pointed to computer panel on the wall. "Maybe we can access camera feed from there and get some information." Garth walked over and started to type something.

"No good. Password locked. And of course we weren't given access codes yet. That won't do."

"So what now?" Tula was starting to get worried. If they had no way of using the computer, they couldn't call for help. Two Atlanteans didn't even have their stuff yet, because it was scheduled to be brought there the next day.

"I don't know. I could try and hack it, but I would need to get to main computer."

"And where is it?"

"I have no idea. This place is a labyrinth. If only we could access the plans..." Garth tried to think of something. Suddenly, he turned to Tula the same moment she turned to him.

"The archives!" They both shouted in excitement. Of course it was stupid and they realized that this most likely gave out their position, but the joy of figuring something out took them over. They wanted to run away, but a tongue of flames appeared in one of the corridors while other was suddenly full of water. While under normal circumstances this wouldn't have been a problem, they knew that somewhere in this water there is an enemy. "Neptune's Beard!" Garth cursed.

Tula was tempted to point out that Percy doesn't have any facial hair yet, but it wasn't the right time. Looking around, she silently pointed to the vent over the kitchen. They both dashed inside, but there was no time to cover it. To avoid being in straight line of fire, They jumped first off-shot they could reach. As Garth (who was after Tula) made it inside, a stream of really hot fire followed them. He dodged in the nick of time.

"That was close. Let's stay mobile." Garth made a gesture for Tula not to block the way. She reluctantly crawled further down the road, feeling the walls pressure her from all sides. It was very much different from the Atlantis, where she had half the ocean to her disposition. She loved the freedom it gave her and here there was no freedom at all.

After checking about five different vent exits, the two teens found themselves in really tight passage over the shower room. Tula tried to sneak over, but she got stuck. Her sarong hooked to one of more loose screws and when she tried to move toward, it pulled her back. Her clothes were made from atlantean material which was supposed to be more durable than what normal people bought on the land and it was also a bit more elastic. Most clothes were tight fitting to allow better swimming. Some women like Tula wore sarong-like additions or long dress, but it hindered their speed a bit. She tried to go back and unhinge it, but Garth was right behind her and they couldn't move in either way.

"Pst. Garth!" She whisper-screamed. "My clothes got hooked to the vent. Can you try to get it out so I can move?"

Tempest tried his best to reach where it was, but his hands couldn't just reach it. It was quite unfortunate. They both tired to shift into different position to somehow reach it, but there wasn't too much area for maneuvers. Vents creaked a bit before it shook. Immediately, they both stopped moving.

"It didn't sound so well. Maybe it would be better if we went back a bit and found another way?" Garth suggested.

"Okay. I will follow you then." Tula agreed. They both started to crawl backward very slowly. All was going well, but at some point Garth must have shifted the wrong way, because before they realized it, they were both down in the shower chamber with parts of the vent laying around.

"Not good! Very not good!" Tula panicked, still in whisper-scream.

They both run to the showers and started to open them. Water would help them in combat and could cover their escape if needed. Silently, they prayed to all the gods that whoever hunted them did not hear that, but that hope soon died when they saw a tongue of fire traveling through the corridor. It did not enter the shower room, maybe because of the air moisture or maybe because whoever controlled the flames didn't wish it. Tula raised her hands and tattoos started to give a bright blue glow. Water in front of them raised and shimmered for a moment. Soon, it became completely invisible, and so did Aqua girl and tempest to anyone who tried to look inside. She finished a spell just in time, because they heard a heavy steps going through corridor. A heavy, mechanic voice could be heard.

"No need to fear children. I am here to take care of you!" It sounded just like red tornado's voice. Tula wanted to drop a spell and scream to him, but Garth put a hand on her mouth. It was probably what saved their lives, because soon enough two red androids appeared in the entrance to shower room. One was bulky just like Red tornado, but his overall body was more human like. While Tornado was built with thought of looking robotic and foreign, this guy seemed like he could pass as human if he had enough makeup applied. He had a reverse symbol of trident on his head and chest. Next to him stood another android with clearly feminine shapes. She had a single arrow going through her body like a tattoo, ending on her head.

Female android wanted to walk further, her sensors picking nothing strange here as the spell also hid the destroyed vent. The male one stopped her. He extended his hand and shot a stream of pressurized water at Garth and Tula. Aquagirl dropped her spell and they both dodged last second. Even with their Atlantean physique it would hurt and break the spell anyway.

"I am impressed. You managed to fool my sight receptors. But I could sense condensed water molecules in the air. Surrender now, or we will subdue you with force." The male android spoke, his voice still the same as those of red tornado.

"No chance red fake!" Garth screamed and used his magic to form a shield just as female android fired a ball of flames at him. Liquid managed to stop most of the fire, but Tempest was still too close to explosion. He was pushed back and fell, some burns on his front side. The fireball was strong enough to actually tear a hole in the wall, leading to another part of the cave.

Tula let out a scream when she saw Garth fly with minor burns on his clothes. It happened to fast to see if his body was damaged. She raised mist once more and wanted to escape with him, but to her surprise it dissipated into nothingness.

"The same trick won't work twice. Your control over water might be greater than the other one I defeated and subdued earlier, but you are still inferior." Red torpedo fired at her with pressurized water. She tried to stop it with her own control over magic, but she was overpowered. It threw her at the other wall. Red inferno just stood there, not acting.

This few precious seconds was enough for Garth to stand up. His whole body pained, but nothing was too damaged. He looked over to see both androids standing in the water. This gave him an idea. "Aquagirl! Get out of the water!" He shouted to his girlfriend. She controlled the water to disconnect from her, understanding what Tempest was planning. Garth's tattoos started to glow. "By the might of Atlantis! I summon the power of Tempest!" With that, he plunged his hands into water. Both androids were too slow to comprehend his plans. Electric wave hit them, paralyzing their systems. Unluckily for the heroes, it was not enough to fry their circuitry. It gave teens enough time to get out through the hole in the wall. They run, making sure to create some distraction with magic tricks.

Finally, they ended up in the living section. They could hear heavy steps following them, which meant their oppressors weren't so far behind. Acting on instinct, Tula pulled Garth into closest doors that luckily weren't locked like the others. From the inside she jammed the doors and prayed in silence to all gods of Atlantis that androids left them alone. The heavy steps passed, but they didn't try to open any doors. Apparently they weren't that great of pursuers.

When they could no longer hear anything, both Tula and Garth released air from their lungs. Up to this moment, neither realized they were holding their breath.

"That was too close. Who were this people?" Tempest whispered. He looked at Tula to see her sitting in the corner, hugging her knees. "Tula?"

"There's no point. We can't fight. We can't escape. We might as well give ourself up and hope the League save us. We aren't heroes. You heard them, right? They got Kaldur and probably all the others. If a team of trained heroes couldn't defeat them, what chance we have. We are completely green to hero business. Well, you at least saved our king. I did nothing. I am not cut to be hero. Maybe I should return to conservatory while I still have a chance..." She was sobbing, whispering all this things. Garth wanted to interrupt her, but he stopped himself and just listened, hugging his girlfriend to give her some comfort. Once she finally finished, he hugged her tighter.

"And leave me here alone? We both know I would probably fail ten times today if it wasn't for you. You are strong, talented and far prettier than me." At the last one she giggled through tears. "Seriously. In the conservatory, you could always beat me in the end. Remember what Percy said? I fight stiff and without any adaptability. You are better cut for this than me. Believe in yourself." She stopped crying and smiled at him. "Now we just need to figure some plan."

They looked around to see whose room it was. They noticed that there weren't many things. There weren't any things at all. Except for a crate under the bed. Curious, they pulled it out. Inside, there was an armor with trident on the chest, a set of gloves with water containers and utility belt with multiple pouches. One of the pouches was unlocked. Inside there was a vial of golden liquid and a place for something else. Something was missing, but they couldn't pay attention for now. They found a working communicator, but it was still jammed.

"I think we are in Percy's old room. Maybe he left something that could help us..." Tula looked around. Under the pillow, she found a small sack of golden coins with symbol of an owl on the one side and Greek temple on the other. "Drachmas." There was not much more. Some clothes in the drawer, a picture showing Percy and some girl with blonde hair and stormy gray eyes smiling to camera. It was put face down on one of highest shelves, which got a curious look from Tula. She wanted to ask Percy for it some day in the future. Girl looked kinda like Artemis on the pictures Kaldur showed them of the team, but not that much.

"Here! I found something!" Garth whispered, pointing to an orange t-shirt with CHB on it. "It radiates with weird power. Like it is not from this world."

"But it is just a shirt... unless that is what he wore when he came here in the first place. It has his energy on it! We can use it to get to him. I think I know a spell that would allow us to send him a message!" She immediately saddened. "But there is a problem."

Garth immediately walked to her and held both of her hands in his. "I have faith in you. I am sure you can do it."

"It's not that. It's just that it requires three sorcerers. This is basically what land-dwellers call 'a seance', only person you try to contact is alive" She explained.

"We know where to find third. You heard them. They got Kaldur. Probably he is held in the same place the others are. If we manage to sneak to them, you will be able to call for help." Garth encouraged her, forming a plan.

"Okay. But we must be careful not to be caught by this walking trash bins." She chuckled, trying to cover her doubt.

* * *

**Jump City**   
**September 22, 16:16**

Percy was sitting opposite to Zoe in quiet cafe in Jump City Mall. Previous day after she got dressed Percy spent about an hour using all his knowledge of magic and his powers to check if she was not at risk of power surge like the one that happened to Cassie. Zoe was quite irritated with this, feeling uncomfortable with how a male looked at her. She could feel the tingle of magic with each different way he analyzed her. Finally, when Roy, who just returned with some more stuff for her made a snappy comment while being in dangerous near proximity, she punched him. While she held back like usual with one of the hunters, not wanting to kill this boy just yet, poor red arrow still found himself on the wall, grudging in pain. Zoe found her strength surprising, but after shock passed she broke into laugh. Roy wanted to retaliate, but before he said or did anything Zoe calmed down and sent him worst case of death glare Roy witnessed to this day. The famous patented bat-glare held nothing to this girl. It was something along the lines 'I have power and you won't be able to stop me from using it.' It sent shivers down his spine, which she noticed. She teased him about fearing a 'girl who just got out of bed', which caused him to rage and walk up to her. This time, she did not send him this glare, but waited what he wanted to say. Of course Roy being himself had to give a snappy comment, which infuriated the new girl. She swiped her legs with incredible speed, knocking him down. Before he even managed to hit the ground, she caught his ankle and lifted him in the air. He was now hanging there, watching her with fear. She wordlessly tossed him on the couch and laughed as he tried to gather himself up and keep at least some pride. When she lifted Roy in the air by his ankle, without any effort whatsoever, Percy concluded that she was in same condition as he was, with her essence infused by this worlds great magic reserves, but anchored by whatever brought her here. He also laughed for good five minutes at the whole ordeal.

Not wanting more 'accidents', Roy decided to leave them be. He gave Percy his phone number and told him to call if he needed something, but asked not to bring the 'incarnated devil'. With that they Parted. Earlier that day Percy finally received his apartment. He immediately offered Zoe to move with him until they can get something more permanent for her, to which she reluctantly agreed as long as her bedroom will have a separate bathroom and lock in the doors.

After that, they left for the mall to get her some clothes. Percy wanted to use the chance and also buy some stuff for himself and make the apartment feel like home. They visited about twenty women clothes stores. For a girl who spent 98% of her life in the wilderness Zoe sure was picky when it came to clothing. He one more time thanked Hermes for the infinite funds card. Otherwise he would have quite a problem. His companion did not know the word 'overpriced'. When Zoe decided that ten bag of clothes is enough for now, Percy kindly agreed to carry it all to the car, together with some of his own new stuff and few additions to his home like more books and a promise to start shopping only through internet.

Seeing as it was only past One P.M., they sat in the cafe, exchanging stories. Percy told her more about what transpired in this world and she told him about her life in the stars. Percy noticed lack of old English, to which she explained that when one sit in the stars without anything to do, he might as well learn this new language.

After Percy finished the tale about his first encounter with the Justice League and how he joined them, she shook her head.

"I don't understand it. You said you came here to have a normal life, but you jumped into the hero business the first chance you got." Percy wanted to say something, but she cut him short, not giving him chance to argue. "And don't give me this bull's pile about 'I had no other choice'. You are THE Percy Jackson, vanquisher of Kronos, Slayer of Gaia, Bane of Minotaur and hundred different titles." He sent her apologetic glare, clearly uncomfortable with being praised. This only proven her that he truly was something else entirely. No other male she met would reject complements, especially the ones he deserved. Still, she continued without allowing any interruption. "If you wanted, you could figure something out. If all else failed, I am sure living in the depth of the ocean wouldn't be so bad for a son of Poseidon. So truth. Spill!" She commanded. At first he wanted to argue, but seeing the glare he relented.

"Fine. You are right. In our world throughout the whole war I dreamed of moving on. Leaving monsters and being a hero to others. I dreamed of living a simple life with Annabeth. Going to college in New Rome, marrying, having kids, getting old together. But when she chose godhood over me, I just shattered... I didn't want to be immortal. I didn't want to watch all my friends get old and wither while I couldn't do anything. I didn't want this. I rejected godhood once before, hoping to be with her and she chose her own dreams over the once we had together. At that moment I wanted to leave. I wanted to run away and hide. I wanted to perish. I even couldn't bring myself to blame her. Deep down I understood her. Athena... She manipulated her. Told Wise Girl exactly what she wanted to hear and pushed her in just the right direction." He stopped for a moment. Zoe was looking at him in silence, waiting to hear more. She was fighting herself not to start screaming at Annabeth. This male was willing too perfect. If his was the other way around and some boy chose power over his love, breaking girls heart, he would probably end up on Hunters' black list. For woman to do this, to lower herself to this level... That was something she couldn't stand. Finally, Percy continued. "Then, I was not even given any choice. I was just told that I am to be god and that's it. So of course I rebelled and found an escape. When I found myself here, at first I really wanted a simple life. I wanted to live in peace like mortals do. But I found out I can't." She wanted to say something, but he stopped her. "Not in that way. If I really wanted I could disappear and not even in million years they would find me. I could live in the deepest ocean. In some secret underwater cave, eating only ambrosia from time to time. But I couldn't. I couldn't imagine this kind of life without her. All my plans. All my dreams of simple life without danger... There was one common in them. My Wise Girl, with whom I achieved everything, to whom I owe everything meaningful in my life. She was with me since the very beginning of this godly mess, helping me, keeping me on the right track. When I was sitting here, trying to think of the future, I no longer could imagine peace and quiet. This two qualities lost their meaning the moment she left me. I didn't want this anymore. Big part of me wanted to do this to help others. But deep down, the real reason was that I could escape the past. I could once again fight my way through all the hardship, this time without her. Somewhere inside, I believed that if I live enough adventures alone, I will forget her, move on with my life. I wanted to distract myself from thinking about what I lost. All of my friends and close ones are alive and in that I find solace, but it doesn't mean it is not painful to think that I will never see them again. I wanted to move on and being a hero was my way to do it. Here. There is my real reason. Are you happy now?" The ending sounded more harsh than he wanted, but this monologue opened more than one old wound. It was painful to speak about it, but at the same time he didn't wanted to hide anything from woman in front of him.

Zoe was stunned. She was completely motionless. She expected him to say that he wanted fame, or excuse to beat people up. That was what all other male heroes she met would say. That is what _Heracles_ really wanted. Instead, Percy once again proved her wrong. She was speechless. Then, she did what probably no one expected. She walked over to him and gave him bone-crushing hug. He was too surprised to react at first, but after a moment he embraced her too. They were like that for a moment, until from nearby a series of shots could be heard. Immediately, they both pulled apart, both in different shade of red. Zoe looked more like Speedy's outfit while Percy was more of Red Tornado's plating.

Percy stood up and wanted to see what was going on. Before he had a chance to get a grip on the situation three man walked to them. They all wore red robes with masked hoods that kinda reminded him of snakes. "All hail his majesty Lord Kobra! In his name give us your valuables or you will serve as a sacrifice to his power!" One of the cultist pulled out a large sack and started walking around, collecting wallets and jewelry. He walked over to a girl sitting with who probably was her boyfriend. They looked no older than seventeen. She said she had nothing and begged the boy next to her to give something for both of them. He said that he doesn't even know her, to which the cultist only chuckled. He grabbed the girl and started to drag her toward the others. "Looks like we found our first sacrifice to lord Kobra!"

That did it to Zoe. She lunged at the three cultists, giving each a punch before they even realized. Two of them fell unconscious immediately, either because they hit their heads so hard of from the pain. The third one actually managed to stay awake, but not for long, because Zoe just stepped onto his manhood and the pain sent him into the land of knocked out. The girl wanted to help her, but before she got a chance, heroine walked to the boy who stood there, cowering in fear. She punched him in the gut hard enough to give him tears. "You are lucky I don't have my hunting knife on me, or you would be castrated." She gave him her best death glare. "If you ever try to pull a stunt like that on another girl, remember the pain." She then kicked him in the balls and walked back to Percy, who looked stunned. "We should probably go." He just nodded and followed her, fearing to argue. She was actually one of the few people in this world who could punch him enough for him to actually feel it.

Of course he had to tempt the fates or whatever was now in control of his miserable life. Before they even managed to walk out of the mall or find place to change, they were surrounded by at least thirty cultists. A man in red, hooded cloak jumped from railing, landing next to them. He was deathly pale and his face was deformed, resembling a serpent "So that is this frightening Perseus, supposed incarnation of Neptune?" He laughed. Multiple cultists mirrored action of their leader. Seeing as he was already recognized, Percy saw no reason in trying to play dumb. He pressed the buckle of his belt and his superhero outfit immediately replaced his normal clothes. He didn't put on his mask, not wanting to provoke the others. He knew he was pretty much invulnerable, but he had no idea about Zoe and it was not worth the risk.

"What? Are your finances so bad you must now rob the teenagers in the mall to fund your cult?" He joked. This caused most cultist to stop laughing and send him a death glares. He didn't even bother. Kobra was also pretty angered by this.

"You insolent fool. I am the mortal incarnation of great lord Naga-Naga. There is only one god there, and his name is Kobra! I challenge you. When you fall, I will prove that I am the only god and take whatever power you might have for myself." Percy was about to ask how he planned on doing that, but Kobra pulled a black dagger with bronze-and-gold handle. He immediately recognized it as something made of godly metals. Especially the blade of Stygian Armor got him worried. This metal absorbed souls with simple touch. The fact this criminal could even hold this showed that there might be something to his boasting. Neptune summoned his trident and put his face-guarding mask on.

"Fine. One on one, nobody interrupts. But I want something in return. If I win, you and they go to prison and you will hand over the dagger." Zoe wanted to jump in or at least say something, but Percy made a hand gesture and stopped her.

"You have no chance of surviving fight with actual god anyway, so I will agree to this." Kobra smiled before taking off his cape. Now his muscular, white body could be seen. "Now, DIE!" With that, fake god lunged at Percy. Demigod had to agree that he was fast. Immediately, his mind went into combat mode. Time slowed down a bit and his perception broadened. He took a step back and blocked the dagger with his trident. Before he could properly get a grip on Kobra's style, the pale man proceeded with a punch to his guts. To Neptune's surprise, this actually hurt. He was sent stumbling back. Not that much, but enough to put him out of the balance for brief moment. Kobra wanted to pursue the advantage, quickly ending the battle, but he had too much faith in his skills. He overextended, which Son of Poseidon used to his advantage. He caught the hand holding the dagger and pulled him even further, just to meet with his knee to the rib cage. Kobra felt immense pain as the air was forced out of his lungs. There was no chance to regain the breath, because Neptune used his trident's dulled end to swipe his left, sending Kobra to the ground. Now it was Percy's turn to try and finish it. He wanted to use the same end of his weapon like a club to put his enemy to sleep, but self-proclaimed god rolled out of the danger. In one jump he was back on his feet, holding his dagger in reverse grip.

"I must say... You are a worthy opponent. I underestimated you. It doesn't change that you will die at the hand of Kobra!" Leader of the cult pulled a lean, straight sword. This one had blade made of jade, with fully golden handle and guard resembling head of Chinese dragon, with blade being it's tongue. Percy didn't know about jade weapon being dangerous to gods and their offsprings, but he didn't want to risk. Something told him that this sword was more dangerous than the dagger. Soon enough, the new weapon glimmered with golden energy, forming intricate designs on the blade. Percy half-expected the villain to actually explain him what it was, but apparently Kobra was not typical criminal. Demigod didn't want to wait and find out the power of this dagger, so he lunged forward, aiming to disarm. Kobra just stepped out of the way with incredible speed. Somehow this blade enhanced his natural abilities much like trident did with Percy when he first grabbed it, only he suspected effects of the sword were temporary at best. Battlefield was suddenly leveled. While before his natural abilities gave . Kobra moved with incredible speed now, not giving his opponent any chance to defend himself. Fake God based his attacks on speed and precision. To defeat him now, Neptune needed to out-speed or overpower him, but this new sword really made it difficulty. He was much more experienced in actual battle to the death, but Kobra had many years of training behind him. Before Neptune had a chance to form a good plan, Kobra swiped his sword overhead. It was blocked by the trident, but then a horizontal slash with the dagger actually passed through demigod's defenses and scratched him. The wound was shallow, but it drained him. Excruciating pain exploded from the wound as small part of his soul was torn. It didn't leave his body, but the blade felt like actually damaging his very essence.

Neptune jumped back focused on controlling water in the pipes and all around him. Almost immediately responding to his command, gallons of water poured from the walls and formed a dome around them, trapping both underwater. At the same time, small earthquake passed through the mall, pushing the cultists away and giving them more space. He made sure to limit it to the area where cultists were standing not to damage the building more. He himself was unaffected by either of this things, but Kobra was now swimming in the bubble of water trying to escape, but he couldn't break the surface tension. Neptune took advantage of the fact that his enemy was distracted and swam by him. The bubble was quite large, allowing him a hit and run tactic. Percy could break the sound barrier with ease while underwater. He willed the water to push Kobra into the center of it and started to circle him, from time to time propelling himself forward and slashing his enemy with bladed prongs or using the blunt end as a mace. Before Cult leader could even react, Demigod was already gone and in different place. After about five such hits Kobra finally had to let the air out of his lungs. Immediately, he was filled with water. Seeing his enemy drowning made Percy release the water, which flooded the cultists but left Zoe completely unharmed and dry. They were now all on the ground, the ones that stood closer coughed water because wave took them by surprise and they didn't have time to close their mouths after witnessing their god get beaten up so hard, not even able to defend himself.

Neptune pulled the water from Kobra's lungs and pointed the trident to his neck. Both weapons were now held in his other hand, encased in the bubble of water. "Surrender. You can't win. It is over." Percy actually hoped it would work, but fake god laughed and swiped his legs at the hero. Neptune blocked it with his trident, but in doing so he had to let go of holding him by the neck. Kobra jumped and readied his fist. He wanted to lunge at the hero, but he was blasted by lightning from the tip of the trident. Percy won and fake god was passed out cold.

"That was interesting to watch." Zoe commented as she picked up the gun, smashed it with her bare hands into a ball and threw it at one of the cultist who tried running, nailing him straight in the head and sending him to join his master. "I think we should do this kind of outings more often." She seemed completely unfazed by the fact she used a hard steel gun like play dough.

* * *

**Mount Justice**   
**September 22, 19:01**

Two young heroes were trying to prepare a plan when speakers in the cave sounded with voice of Red Torpedo. "You have ten minutes to surrender to us or your friends will meet their demise. We shall await you in the hangar."

Tula started to panic, but Garth quickly calmed her down. "Don't worry. They actually helped us. They said they will wait in hangar, which must be where Kaldur and the rest are. We just need to sneak there."

"And how are we supposed to do that? They will be monitoring everything."

"We just need to get their attention elsewhere." Garth smiled.

It took them two precious minutes to polish a good plan. It had some holes and depended on luck, but if they didn't hurry it would end badly. Tula created a watery illusion that run toward the exit (or where they thought exit was). It was supposed to trigger all the alarms and pull at least one guard to check it out. Meanwhile they went the other way, careful not to get noticed. They arrived to the library. Kaldur once mentioned something about secret passage that Robin and Kid Flash discovered during boring day. They got there. Looking for it would be hard if not for the fact that secret-door-finding spell worked just as well on the surface. If only they used it in royal palace maybe the treason of Prince Orm would be discovered long ago.

Tula could feel her magic getting weaker. She performed quite a few very advanced spells and her reserves were running really low. They run through the passage, which led them to lower level of the hangar. The water poured and for brief moment they thought they've been discovered, but it just turned out the exit was now underwater, which was good for them. Garth held the water in place so it didn't flood the passage as they entered. Doors closed behind them and they silently sneaked to the edge. Up on the level they noticed That only red inferno was there, which meant their trick worked well enough. After a moment of preparation Garth used water to propel himself up and land on the android. She tried to stop him with flames, but water tendrils created by Tula pulled her hand down and saved Tempest's life. He landed on Red Inferno and discharged all the electricity he could muster in one, strong hit. It pulsed through the Android, causing her to short circuit. Isolation could only protect you so far. While she would probably regain consciousness soon, it bought them precious time and saved the lives of Aqualad and Miss Martian, whose fire cage dissolved into air. Tula grabbed the passed-out girl and Tempest pulled his best friends as they disappeared under water. They swam toward secret passage when suddenly Tula felt water pulling her and M'gann out onto the dry land. She fought with all her strength, but it was for nothing. Her magic was quickly draining and if she wasted it all here then they wouldn't be able to call for help. Garth noticed what was going on. He swam toward his girlfriend and grabbed her hand.

" _Symbiosi!"_ He let her feed of his own magic energy. Kaldur, who stirred at the atlantean word also channeled his own power. The three teens together managed to overpower their enemy and suddenly, the pull stopped. Curious, Tula swam up, Garth and Kaldur following her. They quickly placed M'gann on the dry land as she wasn't adapted to breathing underwater and they stayed down for bit too long. They noticed the other android also passed, probably after he strained himself too much fighting against combined magic of three young heroes. At least that was the last thought Tula had before she passed out from exhaustion.

* * *

She woke up seeing Garth and Kaldur kneeling over her. She immediately sat up, but her head pained and she felt like someone constantly hit her with the hammer.

"It would be advisable that you do not overwork yourself. You drained most of your energy already." Hearing the voice of a Red, Tula tried to pulse and reach some more of her magic, but she was too drained. Any more spellcasting and she would pass out again. She turned to see Red Tornado, Green Arrow and Black Canary standing there concerned while Flash was pulling others from the melted metal, vibrating them through. She noticed two androids still powered down laying next to one another.

She gave questioning look to Tornado. "Your siblings tried to kill us! Care to explain?"

"Up to this moment I was not aware I had any relatives." Tornado walked toward the two other Reds and knelled over. He extended his hand and wanted to touch red inferno when a crimson spark unnoticed by any of the other present in the room jumped over to the Leaguer. He turned around and sucked the air from the whole room, knocking them all out unconscious.

Before Kaldur was knocked out, he managed to get out a quiet _'why?'_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> and another one bites the dust. For those wondering: the knife was just a knife made from various godly metals and the sword was based on Ao Kuang's sword from Smite, giving ability similar to his passive with this charges. Not planning to introduce Chinese pantheon, but I took the inspiration. Just an artifact with unknown history that Kobra used.


	12. Revelation

**Western Mongolia  
October 1, 01:01**

The Light rarely met in person. Usually, for safety reasons and logistics it was easier to conduct video-conference. But now, it was more dangerous than ever. Somehow this young heroes kept interfering with their masterplan. All started with this random fire at Cadmus laboratory. It took Savage years to prepare this all up to the smallest details. Secrecy was the key. He had to keep his enemies in the dark. He hoped that the deception would work, but it was only a temporary solution. Any more mistakes and interference and whole plan could fall apart. He really hoped that there was a way to rid the world of this sidekicks. Not only it would secure his plans more, but could also deal a severe blow to the justice league.

Most of the other members of the light went happy about their own business for now. They conveyed here to make sure none of them would get hurt during the whole ordeal, but they were supposed to actually discuss other matters as well. Right now they were only awaiting Ares, who was running late. Quite ironic for someone who could literary appear almost anywhere in a flash.

After about thirteen minutes, there was flash of burnt-red light and the God of War stood in front of them. Instead of apologizing, he pointed his clawed, armored finger at Klarion.

"If you ever put this kind of charm on me again, I will gut you and..." He really wanted to trail with the threat, but Lord of Chaos interrupted him.

"Yeah yeah. I get it. No more hexing the scary godling." Klarion said in mocking tone. Before Ares could response, Queen Bee joined the conversation.

"May I know, what was this 'charm'?"

The fires under Ares helmet started to burn stronger. "This immature kid here cursed me so that instead of arriving here I appeared in various fantasy conventions." His voice was dripping with barely contained rage.

Klarion was practically laughing in his chair at the moment. Some other members of the light also smirked, but nobody dared to say anything. Finally, Vandal just clasped his hands. This immediately silenced the group.

"Now. We have more pressing matters to discuss. I do not care what type of quarrel is there between you two, but it must stop now. We are after all striving toward the same goal." Savage made sure to sound as charismatic as possible. He accented each word in the last sentence to make sure they got the message. Reading between lines everyone understood that what he really wanted to say was 'Win together or Die divided'.

"Fine. But I didn't come here to get lectured on teamwork. My powers are growing weaker with each day. This 'Justice League' is quite effective at stopping large-scale conflicts. While feeding of lesser fights is enough to sustain me, I will need more than that to fulfill my part." Ares sent meaningful glare at Savage, who only nodded.

"You will get the conflict soon. Why don't you for now watch over the Injustice league. While I am certain that the league will be busy with the plants, Their sidekicks might pose some threat."

Queen Bee spoke from her seat. "There is also Perseus. He is a complete loose cannon. We have no idea what will he do, but his steady growth in power is concerning at least." She pressed some buttons on the panel and holo-video of his final fight with Kobra appeared. It was not the best quality, but they could all see the beating. "The girl that accompanies him is also interesting." She added seeing Zoe form a snowball out of high-tech machine gun and toss it at running crook with deadly precision and accuracy.

Ares scowled. "She is just an stuck up bitch. She is mine and I will have her once this sea-spawn is disposed off."

The vulgarity of the God of war repulsed Queen Bee. While she admired his passion and power that radiated off of him, He was also brutal and very... old-fashioned. His views on certain matters really did come from ancient times.

"It is reasonable demand, as long as you can actually kill him." Luthor chimed in. "Your last attempt was rather... unsuccessful."

It took Ares all of his patience and self control not to wipe that smug grin off of Luthor's face. He knew that for his plan to work he would need allies and the light served him well so far, so he managed to only slightly flare with power. Of course this slight flare was enough to send Luthor flying into the wall, but it was still better than assuming his true form and wiping out everyone. "Watch your tongue _mortal_. I was taken by surprise." Luthor was about to say something about how Ares gave a different description of the situation when he boasted about how he wiped the floor with 'squirming half-blood' as the god of war colorfully described it, but he reined himself. It was bad enough Lex had one overpowered nemesis. No need to add another. "He somehow accumulated more power than any demigod I know. This bastard can even wield trident of Poseidon and summon it like his own."

"From what little intelligence I got from Atlantis, the Trident _is_ his own. Something about claiming it as his. A gift from Poseidon." Black manta explained, which earned a roar from Ares.

"That stupid barnacle bearded rascal! He gave him the first trident!" the condensation of power in the room suddenly spiked. Most members of the light were really tired with the short temper of their associate. Soon enough, Ares regained his composure. "It is the most powerful symbol of power. It can harness the power of all the oceans and it is supposed to control magic itself, just as lightning controls the might and helm of darkness controls the emotions. But the trick is only someone with Poseidon's blessing can wield it effectively."

Vandal sent Ares a questioning look. "What do you mean the _first_ trident? Is there more of such weapon?"

"No. It is the first trident ever forged. He gifted it to some dude name Altis or whatever, leaving it here and asking elder cyclopes to forge him a new one. They agreed, but the replacement didn't hold that much power. Otherwise Barnacle beard would be able to overthrow my father ages ago." Ares finished.

"Whatever. Don't you have some fake secret society to oversee or something? I want to have some fun!" Klarion acted like spoiled brat, which earned him a scowl from Ares. God of War flashed away.

Vandal was left to wonder. In the past he always respected Ares for his might. He used to be one of the greatest champion of war. But now the world has changed, evolved. The question is can Ares evolve to match the new world. It didn't matter. The time for revelation was coming soon...

* * *

**Jump City**   
**October 1, 13:13**

Percy was not enjoying this day. He planned on having nice, calm day before patrolling at night. He went to park. Zoe actually wanted to go with him, explaining that 'it's not like she had any other friends in the city'. He didn't mind. Truth to be told neither really did he. After the fiasco with the team and Bialya mission he cut any contact with Justice League and Associates and what happened to Wally only solidified the deal. They let him be and he didn't cause troubles. He regretted avoiding Diana, but he couldn't bring himself to talk with her. It wasn't her fault what Batman did, but she was part of the Justice League and he didn't want to talk to them now. The fact that he dropped on the team was also painful. The teenage heroes actually showed him each more respect than whole Justice League combined. They deserved more than a cold shoulder, but Demigod couldn't look any of them in the eyes after what happened to Wally. Somehow he left this ambrosia there and poor kid suffered for it. He had no idea how it could find itself there, but no matter that it did and he was to blame.

Percy and Zoe walked through the park side by side, discussing strangeness and marvels of this world. It was more technologically advanced than their, but also full of aliens. Public seemed strangely calm with the fact that there are beings able to kill almost any single person in the world in matter of seconds.

"Wait!" Zoe laughed in disbelief. "You are telling me that in place of Poseidon's palace there is a whole thriving civilization?" She remembered how he told her about storming the palace, but she assumed it was just some mermen living there, not entire civilization the size of large continent. "And they even have a representation in the UN?"

"Yes. Why is it so hard to believe? You are eternal maiden serving the goddess of the moon and hunt living for almost four thousand years..." Percy chuckled, but he quickly noticed that Zoe's mood changed. She was no longer laughing, instead opting to look to the ground. She didn't even want to meet his eyes. "Did I say something wrong?"

"It's just that... I failed. I failed my mistress. The oath binds us only until our deaths. Technically, I am no longer a hunter of Artemis. And even if I wanted to, I can't become again. That is the rule. Once you leave the hunt in any way, there is no return." She tried to look strong, but Percy felt she was holding back a cry. "And it wouldn't matter anyway. In this world... In this world there is no Lady Artemis." Here he wanted to interrupt and tell that he knows more than one, but neither can be called a lady, but he stopped himself. It wasn't time for jokes. And Zoe had mean left hook. "Right now I am just a nymph of stars, because that is the only thing left for me. I am not even a hesperid anymore. The only thing left... are the stars that my lady put me among. *sob* I have no one. *sob* I am alone. I am just a broken... Useless... I..." Zoe couldn't convey in words how she felt. She was covering her face with hands, but Percy saw some tears get through and fall on the ground. She was crying, but she still did her best not to show any weakness. It was still too much for her. Last four thousand years gone without trace. As much as she tried to resent that thought, the dam broke. Her whole previous life was gone and could never return.

Hesitantly, Percy hugged her. Seeing as he was not punched, he deepened the embrace and pulled her to himself just like she did a week ago when he opened in front of her. "There there. You are not alone. We are in this mess together. I brought you here and it is my fault. You are not broken. You are strong, independent and brave. You are the bravest person I know. Well, right after Annabeth but she faced Arachne and walked with me through... _that place_." He tried to reassure her, but his own tormenting memories flashed in front of his eyes for just a brief moment. Deciding that it is not the time to break down, he focused on the crying woman in front of him. She was sobbing and covering her face, but she slowly calmed down. "Even if Artemis is gone, you are here. You are not useless. Remember how you hit that thug with a squashed gun? I would never make that shot. You are someone special. You are. Never forget that." He did his best to calm her. As much as some of it sounded cheesy to him, Percy understood that she just needed to hear it.

They stood there in the shadow of weeping willow for some time, shielded from the outside world. Neither knew when they got there, but they didn't mind. It provided them with some shelter from the world. After some time Zoe calmed down and wiped last tears. She luckily didn't wear any makeup so the only trace of what happened were red eyes as Percy dried her without leaving any strains.

"Thank you. For being there for me. I didn't know there was so much emotions pent up in me." She hugged him. Percy was so surprised he forgot to breath. Zoe Nightshade, the greatest man-hatter was hugging him from her own free will for the second time in one week. He wanted to make sure that he is alive, but before he got any chance, earth shook violently. From the ground sprouted large plant thingy with three tentacles ending with deep pink flowers.

"And I hoped for calm day in a park." Percy sighted as he pressed the buckle of his miracle belt. He wanted to thank Hephaestus for it the first chance he got. After slapping him of course. He didn't forget the deception, but the anger was slowly going down. "You wanna join me?" He asked Zoe.

"And how exactly am I supposed to do that? I don't even have a mask!" She pointed out to him. He just smiled and detached the back pouch (largest one) from his belt. He handed it to her and nodded for her to open. Inside, there was an outfit similar to what Roy gave her the first day, but painted silver. there was also simple domino mask, but she could tell that it was more advanced than it looked. "What is this?"

"Consider it a gift from me. Your very own superhero suit. It temporary solution. I will try to get you something better later on. For now it should work." He explained with a chuckle.

"And a weapon?" She asked startled.

"Well, I had the gauntlets infused with Kevlar. You know that your punch is enough to probably level a building, right? Small note: try not to kill villains. It's really frowned upon and can land you in jail if you are not careful." He finished. It turned out that as a daughter of Atlas Zoe was actually quite strong. After she arrived into this magic ridden dimension, her strength only increased. Just like her agility, speed, reflexes and aim. Everything about her got better. There was no telling what power she might possess because when she was a special case. She wasn't a demigod, but rather a nymph. If there were any in this world, they did dam good job at hiding. "You don't need to do it if you don't want to, but in case you want to help, here you go."

Without waiting for the answer Neptune dashed out. He summoned the water from nearby pond and created a hurricane around himself. At the same time he infused his jump with tremor power to launch himself in the air. Civilians were running away from the plant but he could sense some still alive and trapped inside. Hurricane only increased, responding to his raging emotions. This was not something natural at all. _No shit Sherlock!_. He could practically feel the magic pulsing out of it. He landed on top of the plant, his hurricane tearing it to shreds in multiple places at once. Neptune used his trident to cut through the plant, but it constantly regenerated. People trapped inside screamed for help, but he couldn't get there. He started to slash with greater speed and failed to notice one of the flowery tentacles fly at him, ramming into his back before grabbing him and tossing him in the air. He was grabbed by two more tentacles and they slowly started to try and tear him in two like some sheet of paper. He tried to fight, but this thing was actually strong. Somewhere in the air he let go of his trident that now laid embed into the ground below him. He tried to control the water, but the pain of his muscles being torn made it hard to focus. He slashed one of the tentacles with water, but it had mediocre effect at best because it immediately healed. He had to think faster. His mind was already in combat mode, but it was just not enough. Suddenly one of the tentacles jerked and was snatched from him, letting him go. Now with one hand free, he recalled his trident. Like always, his weapon dissolved into watery mist and reformed in his grip. Neptune used it to slash the other tentacle and more or less gracefully landed on the ground fifteen feet below where he was held, involuntarily creating small crater as he released the accumulated energy into directed earthquake, hoping to damage the roots.

Neptune turned to see Zoe Nightshade dressed in what he prepared for her. She wore roughly the same outfit as original speedy, but without the stupid hat. It was all silver, but boots and gloves were a bit darker shade of silver to contrast with her normal look. She also lacked utility belt for time being, with it replaced with simple dark belt. Of course he had it prepared for her, in nice shade of black, but he couldn't fit it into the pouch in his belt, as much as he tried. The fact that this thing got there was already a miracle (or some enchantment made to expand the insides of the pouch).

"You didn't think I would let some _male_ have all the fun, did you now?" She said in playful tone. While usually when she said male, it was as an insult, this time it was light-hearten as if she was making fun of her own way of being. Who was this girl?

"Well, I considered this possibility. Glad you proven me, an _inferior male_ wrong." Percy joked back.

"Less flirting, more scouring. We must get rid of that weed." Yet another voice joined the fray. Roy came in running, shooting several exploding arrows at the monster plant. Percy and Zoe blushed slightly at the mention of flirt, but while his face was covered by full mask, her was visible. She jumped into battle to make sure no one noticed. Luckily for her Percy, as much as he improved, was still as dense as demigodly possible.

With newfound help, Neptune once again summoned a hurricane and launched himself at the plant, this time landing lower. His hurricane was slowly tearing through the plant fast enough not to let it regrow. With support of Red Arrow's explosives and Zoe's incredible strength the three young heroes managed to actually destroy the plant to the point when it just withered.

The people they saved scattered immediately, but one small girl walked over and hugged Zoe before her mother snatched her and run, giving heroine a very glad look. In this moment former huntress understood why there were so many heroes in this world. This little girl would probably die if not for her. While Zoe joined the hunt with much more selfish motives, trying to outrun her past, now there was nothing to run from. She could have a normal, mortal life without fearing for her life. But this one look at little girl thankful for this and the mother happy that her child is safe was enough to melt another layer of ice that over the years settled around her heart. She knew now why Perseus did it. Why he was so eager to return to this life, even if it was full of danger.

Their triumph was very short lived. Another plants were sprouting all around the city. Behind the mask Percy sighted. "It's gonna be a really long day..."

* * *

For the next two hours or so they were going all over the city saving people. Percy was starting to get tired from constantly keeping up the hurricane and had to drop it. While in normal combat it came almost natural for him, during prolonged period of time while at the same time using all of his other power could drain him. There was also that the plants seemed to be resistant to the cuts created by hyper-accelerated water particles in the wind. He had to boost his normal tornado by freezing the hurricane. He had now pretty much a snowstorm. It was a pain to concentrate on and limited his use of other powers, but he was practically a weed wacker. Crazy lawnmower moving through the plants. From time to time he would send a concentrated pulse of tremor energy to damage the roots, but it wasn't that effective.

Three heroes traveled all over the city until on every single screen appeared group of villains. While Percy recognized Joker, Poison Ivy and Black Adam, the others were a mystery. He did not really dwell into villains database during his stay with Amazons or the team. They did typical villain speech and demanded ransom. It struck Percy as strange that while they practically held the world at their mercy all they wanted was ten billion united states dollars. He could in theory pay it himself, but that was besides the point. There was more to it than money. If they used the plants to just ripe open one bank, they could get even more. Then he noticed a figure standing in the back. He would recognize this horned helmet anywhere. _Ares._ With his involvement, this suddenly got dangerous. Worst thing was that he seemed to be using some lesser form of mist to hide from the view on camera. He turned to Zoe

"You see him too, right?"

"Yeah. He is hiding. It's a trap, but not for us."

"The team!" Percy screamed. "With the league busy, I am almost certain bat will want to send his covert squad to sabotage 'injustice' league. They will walk straight into the trap. What better way to cause conflict than to have League hell-bent on revenge. It was all carefully planned..." He analyzed while slashing more and more plants that tried to kill him.

"That seems like overdoing to deal with a bunch of protegee." Roy chimed in while firing three arrows and detonating a set of tentacle plants. He had to refuel his quiver like six times already, but he was managing. His muscles pained a bit from constant shooting. While Percy and Zoe had near-infinite condition, he was just a human. Being vigilante in the world of gods and aliens is a really hard task.

"It's not about them. They are the trigger. Imagine what will Batman do when Robin is killed. What would happen to Flash. Or even Green Arrow. This might break them, or worse..." Percy said as he plunged his trident into ground and sent tremor at the plant, pulverizing the roots and causing the plant to wither. Neptune took a vial of nectar from his belt and drank it. Immediately energy coursed through his veins. His whole body revitalized and he felt like ready for another round. Nectar served like ultra powered coffee or energy drink in this case. He tossed another vial to Zoe who gladly took it.

"I need to go. If my predictions are right, Batman is already dispatching the team. I must help them before they all die. Ares will pulverize them."

"Oh! And you are so much better than them?" Red arrow asked, irritated by Neptune's arrogance. He thought that demigod would actually respect the team, not look down on them.

In response to his accusations, Percy channeled a bit of his energy into the trident and shot a powerful lightning blast at yet another plant, which withered from overload of mystic energies. "Is that answer enough?" Roy only scowled.

"Okay, but still don't look down on them like that. They deserve more respect that league ever showed them." He added after a moment.

Percy wanted to answer, but the plants suddenly sprouted red buds that exploded with yellowish green gas. It got to people running away. They wall walked slowly, laughing maniacally before launching themselves at others and maiming them. It seemed like whatever plants released made humans crazy and violent.

"Don't breath it!" Neptune shouted. He lunged in front of the other people, his mask protecting him from the poison in the air. He grabbed his trident in both hands and plunged it in the ground. A giant wave of sea water rose from the crack and pushed forward, stopping the gas and tearing other plants apart. It didn't help, because more plants came, but at least the gas was dealt with. Downside was that the hero was now drained of the power. Wave traveled across the streets like it had mind of it's own, leaving citizens unharmed but tearing the plants to sheds in not exactly clear way.

"It's not working!" Roy shouted as more buds appeared on newly sprouted plant. "they seem almost magical!"

"They are magical!" The realization dawned on Neptune. He did constantly sense this, but in whirlwind of battle he forgot. Pulling his trident from the ground, he instead pointed it at the plant. The tip started to crackle with lightning when he slowly drained the magic. Once he got the grip, he intensified it. Slowly, the plants all around the city lost their green color and instead turned grayish before withering. The trident was now really heated and overcharged with energy. "That should slow them down. You think you can manage now?" Without waiting for an answer, he shadow-traveled to the closest zeta tube to travel to the cave. With this much extra energy he could try and get directly to the cave, but something inside told him that he would need this energy later.

* * *

Inside the cave team just listened to Batman's instructions. Realization dawned on them that they will be fighting the big guys while league minimize the casualties. Zatarra was working on the locating spell, but it was hard. Wotan did his job well masking the location.

_Recognized: Neptune B0-7_

Computer voice announced as hero stepped into the cave.

"Percy! It's good to see you!" Garth shouted, a bit overly excited for the perspective of being on a real mission.

Neptune only waved to him before walking to batman in energetic steps. "You must cancel this mission. It's a trap set by Ares." This earned a grasp from the team. They were familiar with myths and war stories Wonder Woman told them from time to time.

"Negative. This is the best course of action. Besides, what proof do you have?" Batman asked. The moment demigod stepped into the room, his blood pressure increased.

"For once, he is on the video, hidden behind cloaking spell. Two, the ransom doesn't make any sense. They could just as well rob some banks with this plants and get more."

Zatarra wanted to lower the tension. "What do you suggest then? We don't have many options."

"Let the team handle the plants while some leaguers go and destroy this control panel. Shock and awe tactic. Make sure they don't even know what hit them." Percy said without missing a beat.

"That was the plan, except the team will do it." Batman retorted, angry with him. "If all the leaguers are suddenly pulled out from their posts, Injustice league will know there is an attack incoming and might put some more defenses."

Percy pondered the matter for a moment before nodding. "Fine, but I am going with them." He turned to the team. "With all due respect, but you won't be able to handle Ares. I have a really hard time fighting him now. And he is not bound by the ancient laws. He can do as he please in this world." Percy explained, hoping that the team would understand his reasons and not think he is patronizing them.

"What is it about Ares that makes him so dangerous anyway?" Megan asked.

"Well, he is stronger, faster and tougher than Wonder Woman. He is also really powerful in terms of magic, but he prefers to just use his weapons of war. His only weakness is his temper and paradoxically lack of blade prowess. In direct combat, he fights with pure might and without tactic. He believes that because he is a god, he is invincible." Percy explained to the best of his abilities what he figured out during fighting Ares.

"Okay..." Robin actually gulped. This was bad. "So how are you supposed to beat him then?"

"Like I said, he fights with brute force. He can't be overpowered, but he can be outsmarted and outskilled. Also, my weapon is the only thing that can do any real damage to him as far as I can tell." His trident was still crackling with power. "It's made of Imperial Gold, which can hurt immortals. I am surprised it can also hurt mortals and aliens in this world, but I guess there is so much latent magic that everyone is in some way mythical."

Zatarra, who left the conversation and focused on locating the Injustice league finally broke through the magical firewall and pinpointed the location. "There! There you will find the Injustice League. Now get going!"

"Team dispatched." Batman said. They all left toward the ship, but Neptune stayed behind for a moment.

"I hope you made the right call bats." He said before running after the team.

* * *

**Bayou Bartholomew**   
**October 1, 18:52**

Team flew in the camouflaged bio-ship. They were really nervous. While the justice league was trying to deal with the plants, they were supposed to combat seven heavy-hitters. Their chances were small.

"What is in the bag Kaldur?" Tula asked her friend, noticing a sports bag next to his chair.

"Plan B." Was the only answer.

"We are almost at the coordinates. Prepare for landing. " M'gann said, establishing the mental link. Garth slightly winced hearing the voice in his head. He still couldn't get used to it. Percy also winced, but for other reason. Miss M forgot how he feared people getting into his brain. The images of Tartarus, while buried deep down could resurface any moment.

Suddenly, something jerked the ship and M'gann cried in pain. "What's wrong?" Superboy asked.

"Someone's hurting her. She is trying to shield us, but I don't know how long we can actually keep this up." She explained. Soon enough, camouflage mode shimmered before disappearing. They fell down crashing into the bayou. Plant tentacles sprouted and grabbed the ship, pulling him underwater. Bio-ship tried to fight, but something shook it, sending him further down and tearing the top. The face of Black Adam showed in the hole. Immediately, Superboy launched himself in the air, punching the villain and letting Bio-ship close the hole. Water tried to pour down, but Neptune stopped it. They got pulled underwater and Tentacles slowly crushed the ship causing more cracks to appear.

"They want to play with pressure? I will show them pressure." Percy said, controlling the water and increasing the pressure around the tentacles to the point when they just exploded with green goo. He created a bubble of air around Bio-ship moving them onto the surface.

"She will be okay, but for now she must rest. We must cover rest of the way on foot." Megan explained. They got onto the dry land and started creeping through the murky swamp. Suddenly, a painful wave of dizziness knocked them off their feet. From the shadows walked count Vertigo and Ultra Humanite. Before the team had a chance to analyze situation Superboy crashed near them, sending a wave of water and mud in every direction. Black Adam landed on him, both his feet digging into the stomach of the clone. Conner released a loud grunt. The rest of the team had hard time concentrating. Miss M. Already passed from the overload this put on their psychic link. Tula and Garth managed to grab their hands. "Symbiosi!" They screamed and sent a pulse of lighting at Count Vertigo. It broke his concentration and psychic attack stopped. Kaldur jumped onto his feet first and using his water bearers summoned two maces. Next to him Garth and Tula stood up. Both Tempest and Aquagirl prepared for battle. Neptune was tending to M'gann who was still knocked out. Vertigo, ultra humanite and Black Adam, who carried Superboy like a sack of potatoes over his shoulder stood in front of the group.

"Pathetic. League sent their lapdogs to do the dirty work." He scowled at their last attempt to fight back.

"Surrender Vertigo!" Kaldur threatened. "We might not be full members of the league, but we will beat you."

"yeah! Spare yourself embarrassment!" Tula shouted. She sounded almost overconfident, but Garth knew that she is trying to cover for her fear.

"Shut up peasants. It's count Vertigo to you!" Villain was angry at the lack of respect. "I will sho..." He wanted to say something more, but lightning-like energy blast hit him square in the chest, sending him flying away. Neptune stood straight, behind him M'gann slowly woke.

"For your information, I am a demigod, prince of the oceans and seas. So it is you who is lower in the hierarchy." He mocked. Vertigo tried to use his powers, but the headgear he wore was fried by two consecutive energy strikes. Angry, he pulled a sword from his cane.

"It won't matter once you all die!" He shouted angry and lunged at Aqualad. At the same time, Black Adam dropped his burden and jumped at Neptune. Ultra-Humanite started to fire rounds at remaining heroes. In the midst of battle no one noticed that Robin and Miss Martian disappeared.

Auqalad blocked the blade with one of his maces, using the other to deliver a hit to Vertigo's midriff, but the count dodged it. This got Kaldur off balance and allowed the villain to deliver a painful blow with the cane/sheathe. Count then tried to slash with the sword, but Aqualad reformed his maces into twin falchions and stopped the overhead slash by crossing both his watery blades in front of him. He then proceeded with kind of Bladed dance, trying to push Vertigo back. His hands worked in perfect sync with one another and his body, but villain was far too experienced in the art of sword fight. After less than three steps back he managed to throw Kaldur off balance again, breaking the sequence and regaining the upper hand. Seeing that the duel was not in his favor, Aqualad instead focused on the water in the swamp and created a strong wave that knocked Vertigo down. He jumped on the occasion and kicked the cane-sword away, putting the blade to count's neck. He was surprised to see his enemy smile. It was the last thing Kaldur saw before something knocked him out.

Aquagirl and Tempest found themselves at defensive. They didn't have a chance to formulate a counter-attack while being constantly shot at by large monkey. Tula tried to form a shield in front of them but it was destroyed with explosion of another round from Ultra-humanite. The villain then proceeded with another series of large shells, causing more explosions. Two atlanteans barely managed to block them by shooting watery bullets and causing rounds to explode earlier. The kick from explosion was still enough to fly them back and knock them off their feet. They got back, but Tula had some burns and Garth's arm pained him. Ultra-humanite only laughed.

"you can't win. Look at you. You are outgunned and outmatched." He then fired two more rounds. The pair tried to shot them out as well, but instead of detonating like all others, this ones released a green cloud of gas. "It is not joker-venom, but still should rend you pretty useless. An extract from certain flower from the depth of the ocean." Monkey mocked them. In response they wanted to shot him with more water, but their powers were turned off. "Some might say it is a waste, but oh well..." He then jumped at them and knocked them out cold with his fists.

Neptune was having hard time with Black Adam. His opponent was hell'a strong and fast. His attacks still couldn't get past hero's guard, but it took all his attention to get there. After every blocked blow came another, fast enough not to give him time to counter attack, leaving him at defensive. They were both aware that if this continued, it would take hours to get either of them to tire. Both had access to godly amounts of stamina. Finally, Percy formed a plan. It was reckless, dangerous and stupid. Exactly the way he liked his plans. Seeing Adam go for straight punch into his gut, Percy actually let him land the hit. Because villain half-expected Neptune to stop the attack, he put quite the amount of strength, which hero used to launch himself backward. He created a distance and slightly confused his enemy. This short opening was enough for him to land and use one of the most powerful abilities of his trident: drain the magic from Black Adam. A stream of lightning-like energy connected and snared the villain. It was not enough to force the transformation. Black Adam was connected to Zeus, which allowed him some resistance to the attack. Still, the energy rejuvenated Neptune and partially healed his wounds. Black Adam was slowly weakening, but this moment of rest gave Percy time to look around. He noticed a large plant was binding Kaldur, making it impossible for young hero to move. Similar plant, but thicker was tying Superboy, who now conscious tried to escape. Wolf was down cold, his paws also snared by plants. Two other atlanteans were just getting sprayed by some gas, which would most likely put them out of battle. He only hoped that they bought Robin and Miss Martian enough time to complete the mission. The worrying thing was that Ares was nowhere to be seen. With a sight, he turned his attention to his enemies. Suddenly, he cut the connection feeling the trident was already charged to the max. Black Adam looked tired, which was good thing. Before his opponent had chance to react, Neptune released the energy in form of a strong, directed blast at the ancient wizard, knocking him out. He was about to go save his companions but through the mind-link he heard a scream.

Without thinking twice he sent remaining extra energy at Ultra-humanite and Vertigo, knocking them out. He sent a tremor wave killing the roots and freeing Wolf, Aqualad and Superboy. He did not have time to check on them because something told him that Miss M. was in worse condition. Probably the scream he heard, but one can never be sure. He dashed toward where base was supposed to be located, hoping to either meet them on the way or at the place. He didn't even care how fast he was going.

Something flickered in the corner of his eyesight. He turned there and got into small clearing where in circle of fire laid M'gann, surrounded by the ring of fire. Robin was next to her, also surrounded by fire but also bound by energy rope. About three feet above ground floated a man. He had light blue skin and red eyes with black sclera. His hair was black, with a devil-horned hairstyle, and a pointy black beard. Man's clothes were pure red-colored, and he wore a black cape with gold accents. Neptune recognized him as Wotan, the dark sorcerer Zatarra mentioned. He hoped he would have an element of surprise, but Wotan easily sensed all the magic pouring from him. Before Hero had a chance to attack, a white-hot ball of flames flew at his direction. Instinctively, he dodged. Small explosion pushed him away, but it was not enough to even pierce his armor. He immediately jumped onto his feet and then used a directed tremor shock to launch himself high in the air. Wotan created a shield of magic around himself to stop the slash of the trident, but godly weapon easily pierced through the shield. Warlock managed to partially dodge, but three-pronged spear made a deep cut at his right arm. Percy expected some blood to pour, but instead a bit of dark dust came, much like the one that was left after monsters.

"Ah! Foul weapon!" Wotan screamed before firing a quick series of eldritch bolts at the hero, but his target skillfully dodged each and every one of them.

Noticing that fighting warlock is only distracting him, Neptune turned to the other heroes and created a wave of water that put down the flames and being at that somehow tore through the energy rope that tied robin. It carried them into the forest. Wotan wanted to chase after two members of the Team, but Percy threw his trident at him like a spear. He hoped to pierce his shoulder, but dark sorcerer dodged in time. His enemy proceeded with counter attack, hoping to take out the unarmed hero, but Neptune summoned his trident in time. When his attack failed, Wotan retorted to launching a condensed magic bolt. Demigod answered by channeling some of his power through the trident and firing lightning-like discharge at the warlock. Two attacks met in the middle and locked onto one another. It now became pure battle of skill versus natural talent. Only recently Percy figured the logic behind this particular attack. Before he could only do it after draining the magic from others, but he finally noticed that he can also channel his own power into the trident. It was a bit draining, but that was to be expected. This actually gave him more control over the magnitude and power of this type of attack. Right now he was pouring quite a lot. After about three minutes of stalemate he heard an explosion and saw smoke from behind some trees, where large plant was before now there was only a charred husk. This distracted Wotan enough for his concentration on spell to break. Neptune sent the villain flying in the general direction of explosion, following him on the ground.

* * *

While the team managed to detonate the main plant, they were now being pushed back by combined efforts of the Injustice League. Count Vertigo was once again locked in deadly combat against Kaldur, slowly gaining more and more ground. Black Adam was facing Superboy and Wolf. Albeit being drained, he was still a deadly opponent for the kryptonian, especially because of residual magic in his body. Ultra-Humanite did his best to take Bio-ship piloted by now-powerless Garth and Tula and was slowly making progress, landing every fourth shot or so. Robin faced against Joker alone and was loosing badly. He was on complete defensive. In even worse situation was miss martian who had to avoid attacks from both Poison Ivy and Atomic Skull. They kept attacking and she was left only to dodge and try to camouflage herself. It was not looking good for the team.

 _"Tempest, Aquagirl!"_ Kaldur shouted through the mind link. " _Time for plan B!"_

A dark-green sportsbag dropped from the ship right in front of Kaldur. He managed to create a wave of water that pushed Count Vertigo back and pulled something from air support. A golden helmet shined in his hands. He was about to put it on when dark-red flames hit him in square in the chest. He was launched back and hit the tree, loosing consciousness.

 **"Enough of this foolishness. You will all die here and now heroes!"** In the middle of the battlefield stood Ares in all his glory, a twin gold blames covered in burnt-red fire glowed in his hands. Suddenly, team found themselves in chains surrounded by aura just like one emanating from the weapon god of war held. Villains just picked them and moved in front of Ares. Garth and Tula tried to escape, but Bio-ship was shot out of the sky and suddenly some force teleported them in front of deity as well, binding them in similar chains. **"Now who do I start with?"** Ares asked in voice that gave creeps even to Black Adam.


	13. Battle of ages

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I advise play some rock/metal music to this to create a nice climate.

Neptune got out of the forest just in time to see Ares standing in front of the team, all bound in dark chains. Injustice league stood on the side, enjoying the show. He cursed. If only he didn't make a stop on the way to bind Wotan so he couldn't escape. Celestial bronze cuffs do miracle on holding super powered people and so do strong hit on the head. Without thinking too much He summoned giant wave of water and trapped the Injustice league, freezing it immediately so they couldn't escape. The impact was enough to knock most of them out cold. Only Joker somehow managed to stay conscious, but he was unable to break free. Clown's eyes darted all over the battlefield, taking in what was happening. Even when he was trapped and immobilized, he was still smiling as if he expected a show.

Ares turned to where he was standing. " **Ah. Finally the guest of honor arrived. Tell me punk. Who should die first? The young boy number one? The angry alien? Or maybe one of the useless fakes of Poseidon's brat?"** The words put Percy in rage mode. He was ready to charge at Ares, but he managed to calm himself. If he just did that, then there was large chance he would die or the god of war would still kill someone before he got there.

"Let. Them. Go." He said instead. His words were dripping with rage, but he tried to stay calm. Behind his googles, his eyes were that of pure cold fury. Once he reined his initial emotions he went into full battle mode. Not only his brain accelerated, broadening his senses and analyzing every detail of the battleground looking for advantage and potential threats, but also his powers were once again at it's peak. Earth was slightly shaking, ready to turn into full-scale earthquake any second. He had this tug in his gut telling him that he probably was reaching to all water in the Bayou. Nobody threatened his friends and got away with it. Especially not some half-witted god of war.

" **Or what will you do, eh Punk?"** Ares mocked. Immediately he felt earth shake a bit more.

"You are just a coward, you know that?" Percy said to the god of war. His voice was now underlain with mockery. "Instead of going after me you decided to pick on innocent teenagers. Come, show me that you are more than just some spoiled brat of ol' Drama Queen Zuzie. It is well known fact that you are the weakest of all the Olympians. That is why you couldn't marry Aphrodite, right? Because your pop sold her as a trophy wife in exchange for new throne. You are the useless one. There is no more wars now. I've beaten you when I was twelve and without any real training..." He did his best to make sure he pressed all the right buttons. He had to have undivided attention of his opponent. It might have been reckless, but this was most certain way to get him away from rest of the team.

" **YOU LITTLE... YOU GOOD FOR NOTHING SEA SPAWN. I WILL BRING YOU TO THE BRINK OF DEATH ONLY TO MAKE YOU WATCH WHILE I KILL THEM ONE BY ONE, TAKING MY TIME WITH THEM! THEN I WILL FIND LITTLE MAIDEN FRIEND OF YOURS AND MAKE HER MY WIFE-SLAVE FOR ALL ETERNITY!"** Ares raged before lunging at Percy. Demigod just waited for it. As soon as his opponent lunged, he did the same. They met in the middle and clashed their blades. Impact was enough to send each of them back. That moment Earthquake increased tenfold, making it pretty much impossible for anyone but Percy to stand straight. Even Ares had some problem walking. Water from mile radius came crashing, forming giant bubble around them. Almost whole Bayou dried. Only bubble of air was around the team, making sure that non-atlanteans can survive. This time, the battle would be at his rules. A dome of ice formed around the collected water, blocking any remaining moonlight and creating almost complete darkness. Now the only light was barely burning red flames that surrounded the god of war. It stayed lit underwater, but it was also dimmed. With ice dome thick enough, Percy could lessen the hold over water (only maintaining the air bubble around his friends) and focus on his enemy. His life-sense and affinity for water replaced dimmed light. To some extend he could see in the darkness, but right now he made sure that there was virtually no possibility of light getting inside.

Ares was floating in complete darkness. Currents pulled him from the shaking ground into the middle until he lost sight of anyone and everything. God of war was now surrounded by nothing but murky water. Suddenly, a shape swam next to him at mach 3 speed. He was cut by what he only assumed was golden trident. Such thing repeated several more times, each time the smudge either cut him with the trident or punched him. Percy was not holding back this time. He was circling his enemy from afar and striking from darkness. This was nice tactic he learned from watching animal planet with Grover. Sharks played with food this way. Now that he was under water his speed increased greatly. Currents he created propelled him at the enemy like bullets. Ares was slowly wearing out.

Finally, the god had enough. After getting hit he managed to grab Percy by his ankle. He tried to slash, but water itself was slowing him, making his movement sluggish. Demigod easily blocked and then slashed at the hand. Ares roared in pain and let go. Flames around God of war burned brighter as did his rage. He released a powerful pulse of red energy. While Percy resisted it easily absorbing some of it in his trident, rest went mostly unblocked through the water, finally hitting into the dome. Ice withstood the godly blast, but first cracks appeared. With new energy did the demigod attacked, sending Ares flying into the ground. Each of his strike was infused by water pushing his weapon faster and adding more power to strike. Impact was enough to force the God of War all the way to the bottom of the dome. He hit the ground. There was no way to stand up as not only mass of water pushed him back down but earthquake's magnitude increased yet again. Percy came soon after planning on piercing him with his trident. In attempt to slow demigod down Ares threw his sword at the enemy, but Demigod merely dodged, not caring where the sword travels. If he did, then he would notice that god of war didn't plan on striking him, but rather breaking the dome. Before Neptune landed the final hit, Golden weapon thrown high up, unrestricted by water as Percy did not pay attention, managed to plunge itself into the high peak, creating more cracks. With structural integrity broken, pressure created by all this liquid shattered the ice and spilled all over the bayou, destroying trees and other plant life. What little remained from the base of the Injustice League was completely wiped, not leaving stone upturned.

Wave carried surprised Percy away before he stopped himself. Earthquake was still making it pretty much impossible for anyone to walk straight, but Ares overcame it. He lunged at Percy summoning his sword back, but demigod blocked with his trident. Two golden weapons came clashing at each other. Impact was so great that it created a wave of energy that devastated the area even more, yet both combatants stood their ground. Neither willed to take even one step back. Ares attacked with pure fury, wanting to put this meaningless demigod in his place while Percy blocked each attack, powered by his loyalty to his friends. Each time their weapons met, another powerful shock-wave came to life, doing more and more damage to surrounding area. Luckily, there weren't any people in danger. They long since moved from where Injustice league was frozen and the team laid bound. Silently, Percy hoped that they got out or spell was broken.

Finally, Percy made a mistake. He caught Ares blade in the prongs of his weapon and redirected it to the ground, effectively pulling god of war with the blade down. The weapon was locked between the prongs as he plunged the trident in the ground and used it as a pole to boost his momentum as he planned on kicking Ares. He didn't expect his enemy to react so fast. While he was in the air, Neptune opened himself for just a small moment which god of war used to punch him with his hand covered in burnt-red flames. This strike was strong enough to send Percy flying back. Demigod broke at least a dozen trees before making new ravine. His suit could only absorb some of the damage, protecting him from having broken bones. Percy briefly remembered how he trained with Diana when all tricks were allowed. Truth to be told he held back a bit back then. They were on the island in the middle of the sea. If he wanted, he could sink it whole if he went overboard with his power. Now he was sure that team was safe, far away. As far as his life-sense told him, only living beings were Ares and Him.

Percy started new earthquake before Ares got there flying. This one was above 7 on Richter scale. When the sword came, he suddenly focused all the tremor energy into himself and sent it through his trident as he blocked and delivered counter attack. The armor god of war wore was shattered in several places, but it only released more of the burnt-red flames. Under the helmet Ares laughed.

" **YOU CAN'T WIN PUNK!"** He said as he delivered more and more punches. Each strike stronger. Percy tried to call water or create another earthquake but he was slowly being drained. His movement became sluggish. He was using all his power for quite some time now and it was slowly draining him. Ares on the other hand was still almost good as new. Percy found himself flying back after another attack connected.

When he landed, he tried to stand up. His armor was now almost entirely covered in mud. His hair was even more messed than usually and now he had twigs and dirt in it. Ares flew in front of him. He didn't attack straight away, choosing to instead gloat about his victory.

" **Look at yourself. Barely standing. Not able to fight back. Not able to protect your friends."** Ares laughed, watching as Percy tries to stand back using his trident as support. " **You are useless."** *strike* " **Worthless"** *punch* " **Pathetic excuse of a person."** *overhead slash* " **No wonder your girlfriend chose godhood over you. Nobody wants you. Not the team, not your friends, not your girlfriend. You are just alone in another world, running from everyone."** *kick in the guts* " **Because of you your friend will die. Each and every one of them. I might have some fun with the girls first, but they will all end up gutted in front of you. Then I will find this huntress you associate yourself with and teach her the proper ways woman should follow."** The god of war noticed Percy twitched slightly at the mention of Zoe. His mask long ago fell off. " **Ha! Stupid brat. You really believe there can be something between you two? You are dumber than you look!"** Ares plunged his sword in the ground and grabbed the demigod by his neck. He them repeatedly punched him in the face. " **You delude yourself. You..."** He noticed that Percy somehow pulled a pill from the box and now was holding it in his hand. " **What!? When did you...?"** Ares didn't have chance to finish. Percy instinctively squashed the pill in his hand. Immediately white light engulfed the demigod, starting from his hand and covering him whole.

_Perseus. I, Athena,_ _Goddess of Wisdom and battle strategy, lend you my power. I grand you talent of battle and strength to overcome the threats. I give you wisdom to guide you in fight. I cleanse what hurt was done to you in battle and let you once more stand and fight. Prove that mind is stronger than rage._ _May this gift serve you well and maybe you will forgive my deceptions._

Ares noticed that he was screwed. Percy was now glowing with power. God of war wanted to finish his opponent swiftly, but Percy just dodged, grabbing the hand with the sword and using the momentum to pull him forward, only to jab him with blunt end of the trident in his stomach. He then stroked his hand and made him loose the sword. Still standing with his back to the god he elbowed him in the helmet-covered face before turning 180 and using the momentum to cut him in the chest, piercing the armor. More flames started coming. While he gave Ares the beating, Percy's face remained almost empty of all emotions. His glare was cold and calculative. God of war summoned his sword back, but during first strike Neptune caught it in the prongs of his weapon and sent it flying away with mere flick of his wrist. Demigod then jabbed Ares' neck with the side of his palm, right where to parts of his armor met and caused the god to choke. While he was distracted a slash at his armpit caused some golden ichor to flow. Next, he plunged his trident into god of war's groin, earning a yelp from the victim. Ares had no chance of predicting the attacks or even fight back. Every strike required minimum energy, at the same time were really effective. Each was calculated to go right between the plates in the armor, exploiting even the smallest weakness. A swipe of legs caused Ares to fall down. In response he sent a pule of pure godly energy (in burnt-red color), hoping to overpower him, but Percy only absorbed it into his trident before redirecting it and in almost unchanged form sent it back at the god. Blast hit him square in the chest, leaving a smoking mark. Demigod then sent a pule of magical lightning, at the same time latching at Ares' own power, using it to fuel and amplify the lightning, creating almost infinite loop. God found himself pinned down and in excruciating pain. Each passing second more and more of his power was drained. Finally, his rage reached his limit. He sent another wave of energy, forcing Percy to stop the lightning to absorb the attack. he used this split second to stand up and fly a bit in the air. He started to assume his true form, wanting to wipe the irritating demigod from existence. His energy slowly gathered and golden light poured from him. He was mere seconds from going ultra-nuclear when pain like none before overwhelmed him. He looked down to notice trident sticking from him. Percy used the fact that he flew up to exploit the point where his breastplate overlapped the midriff protection. In normal circumstances it would be impossible, but he was now high enough to allow proper angle of launch. Both his lungs were now pierced and his pericardium torn, albeit not completely. Trident dematerialized and returned to Neptune's hand, causing waves of ichor to flow from under his armor. Ares found himself choking and felt like he would soon pass out. Never before anyone beaten him so hard and brought his body to actual brink of death. Of course he would regenerate in tartarus and return, but it would take some time.

" **You win this time, but there won't be any goddess to strengthen you next time!"** Ares screamed before flashing away. Percy immediately run toward where he left the team. He won the battle, but now he had to make sure they survived.

* * *

Percy arrived at the place where 'Hall of Injustice' was located, only to find his friends untied and talking with the league. Luckily, the mask returned to his belt like most things. Hephaestus must have predicted that he would loose it at some point or another. Seeing that they are all safe and sound, he slowed and walked to them, now much calmer. Athena's energy long gone from him, albeit not without leaving few lingering gifts that he would look into later.

"Took you long enough to get here." He said to the league, getting their full attention. Immediately, he found himself facing the seven main members.

"What was that... that... what did you do?" Flash was lost of words probably for the first time in quite a long time.

"We arrived as soon as the plants stopped attacking, but there was a giant dome of ice there. We tried to break it, but it somehow resisted even superman. Then it shattered on it's own, sending gallons of raging water in all directions. If it wasn't for green lanterns we would probably be crushed. After it settled down we had to deal with Joker and his suicidal attempt. In the far there was a series of explosion. Care to fill the gaps?" Batman summarized, showing no emotion.

"Ares. He was about to kill the team, so I got his attention." Percy wanted to continue, but Diana interfered.

"Is it safe to assume that you did it by taunting and insulting him?"

"Yup."Percy said popping the 'p' at the end "I called him weakling and a coward. I might have also mentioned how he couldn't marry Aphrodite because his father wanted new throne..." Percy said with grin on his face. Diana didn't know if she wanted to congratulate or slap him for his stupidity. Finally, she did both in reverse order.

"that was stupid. He could have kill you on sight."

"I prepared. The moment he jumped I called all the water in near proximity, that is whole bayou and created the bubble. Then I used ice to cut any light and let me focus on beating him not holding the water."

"Scanners detected earthquakes in the area getting as high as 8.7 in Richter scale. That was you." Martian Manhunter half asked half stated.

"Also yes. I managed to pull the fight away from anyone else so that nobody would get caught in the crossfire. Finally, I managed to beat him and he run away. He has broken gorge, deeply cut armpit and pierced groin, both lungs and maybe heart. Not to mention multiple burns. Metal armor and magic lightning don't go well together." Percy stated almost carefree.

"I looked around. Whole Bayou is in ruin. Just how strong are you? Not even Diana could pull this off..." Superman shook his head.

"I believe she could, but she didn't explore her full set of powers. It might also be that the trident gives me some cool new abilities like magic lightning."

"It doesn't matter now. We won today and we should celebrate. what you say cuz?" Wonder Woman asked. She really hoped that this was her chance to get back in contact with Percy. She wanted to reach him for long time, but she couldn't. He avoided her or anyone from the league going all 'Roy' on them.

Percy pondered it for a moment. He noticed that Batman wanted to question him more, but Diana sent him a death glare that shut the Dark Knight up. In truth he did miss her and wanted to rebuild their relationship. She was always friendly toward him and showed him respect. They were equals, unlike what certain billionaire tried to do, bossing him around. He also wanted to speak with the team. For too long he avoided them. Seeing them almost killed broke something inside him. No matter what fallouts they might have had in the past, they were friends. He owed them at least to talk from time to time.

"Okay. Come tomorrow at this address." He quickly pulled a sticky note and a pen from his belt and gave her location of his new home. She was his family and he didn't want to hide from her for the rest of his life. "Now I want to talk with the team for a moment." He walked over to where younger heroes were standing, leaving the league to wonder about his true power.

"...and then something hit me in my head and I blacked out." Kaldur told them.

"It was one of Ivy's plants." Garth clarified. He wanted to say some more, but Percy walked into the circle.

"How you all feeling?" He asked a bit awkwardly, not knowing what else to say.

"Dude. You took down an actual god of war all by yourself and you are asking us about feelings?" Robin asked, all too excited.

"Yeah. I saw how you manipulated the water. I can only assume that this earthquake was also you. I never saw anyone with that much raw power." Tula said, almost jumping. "Not even queen Mera could do such feat. And how you created Ice dome to cut the light out! Incredible. Then I saw some golden glimmer around Ares. That was you, right?"

"Yeah. I watched the video about how sharks fight with hit-and-run tactic and decided to do the same. Turns out it worked quite well..." Percy answered modestly.

"I think it worked better than 'quite well' my friend. You singlehandedly took down god of war right after you stunned whole injustice league locking them in ice. Not even superman could do that." Kaldur praised him. "It was an honor to fight besides you."

"Nah. No big deal. Listen. I am sorry that I ghosted on you... twice. I won't be making excuses. I just... I wanted to say I am sorry." Percy extended his hand. To everyone's surprise it was Conner who walked to him and grabbed him in roman handshake. They were silent, but between two of them there was this silent understanding.

"I wanted to ask for a rematch in the hand-wrestling, but after what I've seen today I think I will have to pass." Conner joked. He then returned to stand by M'gann.

"You will always be welcome to return to the team if you wish so. We will greet you with open arms." Kaldur said. Percy shook his head.

"Not likely. Bat won't let me return anyway and I even if he did I probably wouldn't be able to work with him anyway." He was sad, but that was the cold truth. He pulled a type of communicator from his belt. It was round disc with speaker and microphone on one side and emblem of a trident on the other. There was also a button in the middle of it. "But if you ever need my help or want to talk, just press the button and I will most likely immediately answer the call." Robin grabbed the thing and pressed the button. They all heard Percy's buckle vibrate and he pressed a finger to the side of his mask. They heard him say 'hi' before he ended the call. "I always have the belt in hand's reach, so there is that."

"Still. If you want to return I think I speak for all of us to say it would be splendid to work together." Garth said, hoping to convince Percy to join.

"I will think of it. I still have things to sort out on my own. But enough of that. Let's go somewhere celebrate. I know a great place in Metropolis." Robin said.

"I like the idea. Maybe it wasn't destroyed" Garth smiled.

"What are we waiting for then?" Percy smiled. "I will call Roy. He must hear about today. Maybe Zoe will want to join too..." Seeing their questioning look he quickly gave them 'I will explain later' glare. They just shrugged and rolled with it. It was good to be reconnected with friends.

* * *

**Western Mongolia  
** **September 2, 01:16**

Ares flashed in front of where all the members of the light were gathered, waiting for storm to pass. Luthor was already arranging humanitarian help for Metropolis and other areas, hoping to swoop in and use it to expand his influence. Rest of them were watching satellite footage of his battle with Neptune.

" **Stupid Punk."** He said before collapsing on one knee.

"Now now." Klarion smiled. "No need to kneel before us. Although I do enjoy it." His grin was really unsettling for most normal people.

" **I want him dealt with. I don't care. I want his head."**

"I agree." Vandal spoke. "He is becoming too powerful. He will either see the light or be terminated. He might foil everything we worked on."

Manta pressed a button and image of the vial he brought to the light when he first joined them was displayed. "My scientists analyzed the compound. It is impossible to replicate. For all intended purpose it is just salt water, but it clearly has more effects.

" **You idiots! You had scorpion's venom this whole time and didn't use it?!"** Ares tried to stand up, but he fell back. He summoned himself a chair, but for some reasons his wounds wouldn't close. " **I could have used it to defeat him today. Now I fear he will grow too powerful before I get another chance. This body is weak and damaged. I need something stronger. Something tougher."**

"A kryptonian?" Luthor asked.

" **No. This stupid host was constantly fighting me. Now I can sense him pass and when last of his life disappear I will 'die' too if I am still bound with him."**

"I am sure we can get you to superman in some way." Queen bee chimed in.

" **No. I need a body that is alive, but doesn't have any soul. A mindless beast, empty of anything humane."**

"I might have something for you..." Lex smiled.

" **If you are talking about this half-kryptonian clone of yours, don't bother. I need someone with affinity for magic, not weakness to it."**

"I have someone better. With Klarion's help I am sure we can modify him to _match_ your requirements." Luthor said with malicious grin.

" **Get me someone powerful. I must leave this body at once."** Ares said before taking off the helmet. In a flash of burnt-red light Riddler returned. His body was a complete mess. he had three large holes in his chest and blood was everywhere. His hands and legs were broken. He was choking on his own blood and broken gorge. Once last traces of magic that kept him alive left his body, Edward Nygma let out last breath and his body fell limp.

The Riddler died, killed by wounds that weren't even his.

* * *

**Jump City  
September 2, 12:29**

Percy welcomed Diana into his new apartment. Zoe was in her room, reading some history books. As someone who lived through every major event of western civilization she took great pleasure of 'correcting' the books apparently.

"So Percy. Good to see you've settled down." She said once they were sitting at the table. He prepared them coffee and brought two plates of pie.

"Yes. I heard that every hero needs to have his own town he protects. I heard Jump City had none so I thought why not?"

"Tell me more. We didn't have time to talk for so long. To be honest I missed this coffee breaks of ours." Diana encouraged. She was happy that they had a chance to reconnect. Outside of her mother she didn't really have any other family. And Percy could relate to many of her own problems with fitting in this world.

Percy was about to start telling her what changed since they last met, but he was interrupted when Zoe appeared on top of stairs leading to the floor. "Percy? Who is this?" She asked.

"Zoe! Come here. You should meet Diana." Immediately, he slapped himself for not explaining. It was too late. Zoe rushed down and hugged Wonder Woman.

"Milady?! Is it really you? How are you here? How is the hunt? What with Phoebe?" Diana found herself being bombarded by questions.

"Zoe. Not that Diana!" Percy finally managed to break the news to her, much to Diana's relieve. He did take pleasure watching how confused his cousin was at the situation, but he had to stop it. "Diana, meet Zoe. She is a friend of mine, Lieutenant of the Hunters of Artemis back from my world. Zoe, this is Diana of Themyscira, Daughter of Zeus and Queen Hipollyta, princess of Amazons."

He watched as she turned red in embarrassment. "I am so sorry. Forgive my confusion. For a moment I hoped my lady came here." She said, not looking Diana in the eyes.

"It's okay. I know it can be confusing to be in completely new world. Is it safe to assume you were the silver-clad heroine that helped Percy during the plants incident?"

"Yeah. that was me. I couldn't let men have all the fun." Zoe said, returning to her usual self.

"Well said. They wouldn't last ten seconds without us, right?" Wonder Woman commented highfiving her. Percy groaned. _I have created a monster._ For next two hours Diana was so consumed talking with Zoe that she completely forgot about Percy. He didn't really mind, just sitting there and listening. That is until alarm flared.

"What's going on?" Zoe asked.

"Someone's trying to break in here." Percy explained. He actually bothered to read the specifications of his home. Suddenly lights died and alarm stopped. Everything was dead silent. All three heroes were standing tense, ready for whatever was to come. Suddenly windows were shattered and group of assassins in dark outfits jumped in from the roof, sliding on the ropes. Behind them came Sportsmaster, Deathstroke, Lady Shiva and Cheshire. Percy was really surprised to see her with them. He guessed she returned to the life of crime, but hoped she would at least leave him alone. Internally, he groaned. Of course they were bound to find him soon. Assassin's wouldn't give up and they probably wanted to split the increased reward between themselves. He pressed the buckle of his belt and armor covered him. He summoned his trident. In the corner of his eye he noticed a bright flash of light and Diana changed into her usual armor.

"You picked wrong day to attack me, you know." Neptune started, giving villains his best death stare. He could swear he heard some of masked assassins gulp. This was the famous 'No matter how bad you are, I can be much worse.' glare. Even lady shiva lost a bit of her composure. "Yesterday I had really tiring day. Now I just reconnected with my cousin here and you are interrupting us. I give you one chance to turn around and go back to whatever place you crawled from." He growled. "Otherwise I will drown you in ice-cold water before sending you back there myself." His voice was dark and harsh. He mentally noted that he sounded a bit like big scary bat.

"Now now. What do we have here." Another voice joined them. From behind the heroes came a man clad in dark green cloak over white shirt and black vest. He also wore black bracers and yellow sash. His knee-high boots were also black. Percy cursed himself for not checking for anyone behind. If this man wanted, he could stab him in the back or shot him.

"Ra's Al'ghoul" Diana said. "What makes the great one come out of hiding?"

"Why this young man of course." Ra's said in laugh. "You made quite a stir in the underworld. After the story about how you killed Ares and poor Riddler I had to meet with you."

"what you mean killed Ares? He escaped. And what is this bull-shit about Riddler? I didn't see him since the... Oh!" The realization dawned on Percy. "I didn't mean... I had no idea..."

"Of course you didn't mean to. But he is dead, killed with this very trident."

"Percy? What is he talking about?" Wonder Woman asked, unsure about what is going on.

"Riddler... Few weeks ago he tried to steal Ares helmet from a vault in the Perez Bank. I cornered him and he put the helmet on. Suddenly in his place stood Ares. We battled, but I forced him to retreat after bringing the cave we were in down. I barely managed to escape with Zoe. That is when she came to this world." He explained. "I had no idea he actually possessed the villain. I thought he just used the disguise to cover his tracks. Like when Apollo... Never mind."

Deep down Percy was conflicted. On one hand he wasn't sure if Riddler deserved to die. He was a firm believer in second chances. But he also read the guy's folder. Riddler was convicted of at least twenty cases of murder. Only reason he didn't sit on electric chair was because he was declared clinically insane and thus couldn't be held responsible. There was also the fact that this was pure incident. He didn't know what effects his actions would have. But Percy was sure of one thing. If Ares was really dead, he wouldn't loose even a second of sleep because of it.

"Yes. Sadly, Mister Nygma's death was the effect of this mistake. Now you seemed to scare some really influential people. Apparently hero who is not afraid to kill worries many." Ra's seemed to take great pleasure with playing with them. "There is a handsome bounty on your head mr. Jackson. I assume you knew that already."

Percy tensed, preparing to deal with this opponents. His apartment was designed to have several containers with water hidden in different places for easy access in case of attack. If needed, he could quickly summon it without actually ripping all the pipes from the wall. Quite useful and easier to clean after. Others in the room also tensed. Everyone was on the edge, waiting for smallest signal to start battle. Most of the assassins didn't assess their chances as too high.

"Get to the point. I want to know if I should swipe you through that window already or you got some point to make." Percy threatened with a growl.

"No need for such animosity mr. Jackson. I came to actually make you an offer. I am in need of people with your skill. I can get the bounty erased and grant you protection, training and a job. You would have everything you needed. In exchange you would do a job for me from time to time. Of course your friends would also have protection which they would otherwise lack. We wouldn't want anything to happen to this beautiful ladies, right. It would be a shame if one of them suffered some fatal injury say from poisoned sai or well-aimed bullet."

Percy acted like he is actually thinking about it. After short time he just smiled. "Well. When you put it like that there is only proper answer to that, right girls?" He looked at his two companions. They gave him questioning look. Percy walked to Ra's until he was standing face to face with him. Up close he was about two inches higher than the Demon's head. "Listen here carefully, because I won't repeat." He said with sudden change in demeanor. His face became blank of any emotions. "If you think that I would betray my friends and everything I believe in just like that then think again. Here is what is going to happen. You will take the bounty which I already figured that you placed in your scheme to get me to join you, you will leave me and my friends here alone. You will go back to whatever hole you climbed from and stay there, praying to gods that I won't come after you for threatening my friends. If anything happens to them. Anything. Then I will go after this organization of yours. And I promise you, there will be nothing left of it when I am done with all of you." Water from the hidden compartments came to him and floor was slightly shaking. "Because let me tell you a bit about me. I fought monsters, gods and other immortals since I was twelve. I slayed pretty much every thing in Greek and roman mythology. Yesterday you saw how I killed Ares, the god of war. I walked through Tartarus, the eternal pit of torture and came back. I made Alkhys, goddess of Misery beg for mercy. If I wanted, I could wipe this city from existence and I am pretty sure not even superman could stop me. So let's get one thing straight. You want to go after me? Fine. I can handle myself. But the moment you start threatening my friends and family only to get to me? You are as good as dead. Now get out of my home before I remove you through the window." Behind him, water formed into seven feet tall wave ready to push them all out through the window they came through.

At this point, the black-outfitted assassins dropped their weapon and backed away from him. Lady Shiva, albeit her face showed no emotion, was subconsciously shaking. Sportsmaster's eyes were full of dread. Deathstroke tried to cover it, but he was scared beyond life. Cheshire was whisper-praying that Percy didn't loose it here and there. Ra's took a step back. They were all aware that this was not some boy-scout who would give them slap on the wrist and send them to prison. They saw clearly that this man in front of them would follow on his threat without second thought. This was a trained warrior, someone who had to kill to survive.

"Shame. I really hoped you would join us. Oh well." Ra's said. His voice wavered for a moment. Then, before Percy registered middle-aged man plunged a dagger coated in something green into his gut. The armor tried to stop it, but substance burned through it in matter of seconds. "Sorry it had to end like that mr. Jackson." Ra's said before helicopter flew in front of the window. Assassins walked inside and flew away. Wonder Woman wanted to chase after them, but Zoe stopped her.

They noticed that Percy was on the ground, his skin was pale. Zoe pressed the buckle and armor retracted. They could now clearly see the wound. It was bubbling with green poison.

"What is this thing? I never seen something like that." Diana pointed at the effects. His veins were slowly turning black and his skin paled.

"I did. Only once in my whole life. This is the poison from scorpion my lady created together with Gaia to kill Orion. The poison was potent enough to slay a giant against the treads of fate and prophecy. Strongest and darkest type of magic." Zoe explained.

"Is there any antidote?" Diana asked, worried.

"None. Only Lady Artemis or Gaia herself could undo the curse. Well, now that Percy effectively killed Gaia, only Lady Aremis could do anything, but she is not here." Said Zoe. She noticed Percy tried to pull something from his belt. She helped him and found herself holding a strange box. It popped open, revealing twelve pills with symbols of different Olympians. Athena's and Hera's pills were missing. There were suddenly two voices in her head. One was telling her that this was not for her, but the other suggested using one to save Percy. Her hands shook as she pulled the one with silver arrow in front of a moon, a symbol of her mistress.

"what is that? What are you doing?" Diana asked, still distressed about her cousin's state.

Instead of answering, Zoe swallowed the pill.

* * *

Suddenly, Zoe found herself back on the sky. Only now she saw Moon chariot traveling next to her.

"Hello Zoe Nightshade. My friend." said a familiar voice.

"Lady Artemis! Milady! You are here. But where are we? What is going on?" Zoe was confused. One moment she was trying to save Perseus, the other she was talking with her mistress, being among the stars again.

"The pills you found are gifts from gods to Perseus. He probably told you what occurred after Second Giants War... I still regret what we did, but it was necessary..." She said more to herself than anyone else. "We don't have much time. I know what is happening now. I can offer you a chance to save him, but there is a price. Two things I must tell you."

"I will do anything to save Perseus" She said before fully comprehending the meaning behind those words. Somewhere in the back of her head there was this voice screaming at her for risking everything for some _male_ , but she silenced it and rejected those thoughts. Percy was the only descent male she met and she wasn't about to loose a friend.

"You like him, do you?" Artemis asked, earning a confused look from Zoe (Don't ask how stars can look confused).

"He is my friends if that is what you are asking. He is not like the other males. You said so yourself." Former lieutenant said.

"Yes, yes he is. Before we get to other things I want you to know this: You died in battle, effectively leaving the hunt. The oath no longer binds you to me."

Zoe was confused. Her mistress started to speak in mysteries and she couldn't figure this out. "I don't understand milady."

"You will when the time is right. Now to the other matters."

* * *

Back in the main room of Percy's apartment Diana was panicking. First her cousin was poisoned with most potent poison ever and now Zoe took some pill and collapsed, drifting into unconsciousness. She was battle-hardened Amazon, but this powerlessness frustrated her beyond anything. "Come on! Fight it Percy!" She screamed at him. She already poured three vials of Nectar into his throat. He could just as well spontaneously combust from it, but it seemed to help him. She pulled the dagger, carefully not to touch the poison and bandaged the wound. Good thing Demigod kept a first aid kit in every room.

Suddenly, Zoe's body was engulfed in silver light. When it died, her clothes changed. She now wore armor similar to that of Diana, except more modest. The main peace instead of ending at her breast was prolonged by black material going as high as her neck. The lower parts was improved with several strips of leather that added to overall modesty and resembled skirt, albeit it didn't hinder movement in any way. Her Amazon bracelets were connected with finger-less gloves, each decorated with symbol of moon and going as high as above her elbow, to the middle of her upper arms. While she kept the golden decorations on all edges, red parts were replaced with silver. Boots, like everything else were elongated and now went beyond her knee. She also wore a simple metallic diadem. To her back was strapped a silver and black bow, but quiver with arrows was nowhere to be seen. Wonder Woman suddenly felt naked compared to Zoe. New Armor held enough similarities to hers, but also seemed much more practical. It didn't show too much, but gave freedom of movement.

Zoe walked over to Percy and placed her hand on his chest. Silver light poured from her hands. Slowly, the son of Poseidon regained the color and black veins disappeared. The stab wound completely healed and bandage just disappeared. After that, Zoe collapsed on the floor next to Percy, barely breathing. He opened his eyes and turned his head to look straight into hers. She starred into his two sea-green orbs just as he starred into her charcoal black. "Thanks." he muttered before drifting to sleep as his body regenerated from the strain. Zoe smiled and also fell asleep, trying to comprehend everything her mistress told her while they met for the last time ever.


	14. Aftermath

**The Watchtower  
** **October 1, 23:16**

The whole Justice League gathered in conference room. They were supposed to discuss situation with the 'injustice league' and possible similar organizations, but before Batman could start, Diana spoke.

"I think that before we go into conspiracy theories and all this madness there is different matter to discuss."

Aquaman joined her. "Yes. I've heard what occurred at the cave before mission."

Most of the Leaguers sent them curious glares and then looked at Batman for some clarification. Seeing that Bruce is not going to say anything yet, Diana continued. "Neptune warned you that this could easily become suicide mission. Seriously Bruce? Sending a group of proteges against Ares?" This earned a grasp from some members. "Even if he wasn't there, that plan of yours was even more reckless when Percy decided to face the God of War solo." Batman was still silent, only sending Wonder Woman his patented Bat-stare, but she would have none of that. "You sent them to fight against seven heavy-hitters. Under normal circumstances that is the moment when any member would call for backup of at least half the league. And you sent six teenagers and a wolf." She was now fuming with anger. Since the fiasco with Wally she had to bottle it all up so she could still work with Bruce. "He warned you. He offered alternative. Yet you chose to ignore him. Based on what exactly? Your ego or your fear?"

The rest of the league was speechless. Some were worried about members of the team and what really would have happened. It was almost a miracle that Kaldur managed to get to the helmet of Fate before Joker-venom got to them. What would happen if Neptune wasn't there to face ares? What would happen if the team was just killed by villains before they completed their mission. League would probably fall in battle with the plants.

"Are you finished?" Batman asked. Wonder Woman wanted to rant some more, but he didn't give her a chance. "Sending the team was only logical course of action. They got the element of surprise at their hand and they were more than ready. If whole league was pulled, how many people would have died from the plants? Even if just half of the league? This was a decision for greater good."

This time, it was Green Arrow who spoke. "And don't you think others should also give some input in such decision? We have newest communication system available for a reason. I am sure it could be discussed over quickly."

"I did not want to distract you from protecting civilians."

Black Canary got angry "So you decided you have to shield us? Withhold information for our own good?"

"Let's face it. Batman doesn't trust anyone but himself. I wouldn't be surprised if he carried kryptonite and some flash-repellent in his belt so he could take us down if we turned." Barry spoke up next.

"Believe me he does." Said Green Arrow. "I think it's safe to assume he has a way to defeat any of us right now." This caused murmuring all around the table

"Enough!" Superman shouted and all eyes turned to him. There was now dead silence in the room. "Batman made a mistake, but we all do." He noticed Diana was about to speak again, but he stopped her. "Let me finish. He made a mistake, but we can't kick him out of the league for one wrong decision."

"The team, secret ops team that batman created, almost died there. That is not a mere mistake you walk away from. This mistake could be avoided if he trusted Percy."

"Yeah. What is your problem with him anyway?" Aquaman asked. He came to like Percy over the time, even with their rocky beginnings.

"He is a wild card. He has enough power to destroy a city." Images of bayou after the fight appeared. Trees were broken and dead, hall of Injustice was a ruin, there were multiple cracks.

"So? So can I and probably half the league." Captain Atom stated.

"But you all have rules. You do not kill. He is willing to cross that line and take a life. He already killed and he said he would do it again. He took a life..."

"Of a criminal about to murder woman in front of her daughter." Diana stopped him. "any court would write it off as justifiable homicide without second thought. He had to make a choice and he chose to act. Just because he doesn't condone to your believes doesn't mean he is automatically a 'threat' and 'liability'."

"Homicide is never justified. He killed and was willing to kill again."

"Excuse me, but did you see who he fought?" John Stuart asked. "If this is the kind of enemies he faces on regular basis, gods and monsters of such power... Subduing is not an option. It is kill or be killed. He is trained soldier who went god knows through what."

"That is no excuse. Superman faced..."

"Now you are deluding yourself Bruce." Green Arrow once again interrupted him. "You just can't let go of the fact that not everyone bends to your ways."

"Excuse me, but is this supposed to be 'pick on batman day'? I thought we met here to discuss the Injustice league." Hal Jordan asked. "Besides, Batman is right. If league left their posts, many innocent people would have died."

"Yeah! And besides Batman is right. Killing can't be justified. Kill for kill is rule of beast." Captain Marvel spoke, accessing his wisdom of Solomon for the last part.

"He put innocents in danger. With all the respect for the team, they barely did it. If the whole league went there and dealt with the villains, we could end it in minutes. We had numbers advantage and power. It could have been planned better if he actually trusted us." Hawkman spoke.

"The truth is he doesn't trust anyone. He drove Neptune to go solo. If he actually trusted others and wasn't such a prick, maybe Roy wouldn't just run to go solo either." Flash sent a deadly glare to Bat.

"Batman is acting in the best interest." Said Martian Manhunter in his monotonous voice. "I believe his actions were, given the circumstances, justified."

"Justified? He sent your niece practically to her death." Flash didn't want to let it go. "If it wasn't for Neptune, then... I don't want to imagine."

"In the end it all turned great, right?" Billy wanted to discharge the atmosphere.

"But what if it didn't?" Wonder woman spoke again. "His distrust, stubbornness and close-mindedness are putting people in danger. Someone like that should not lead the Justice league." Some members grasped for air, completely taken aback by sudden declaration. "I call for vote of no confidence for Batman's leadership and urge to accelerate election of next leader." She spoke with diplomatic experience gained from years as ambassador of Amazons.

Batman only growled in response. He didn't expect Diana to go that far. He really hoped it would end on some arguing and they would proceed. He underestimated how close she had become with Perseus during the time they spent together.

"Okay. I think everything was already said, so if no one wants to add anything, let's move to vote." Superman said in a bit unsure voice.

* * *

**Jump City**   
**October 2, 14:53**

Diana was furious. Somehow Ra's Al'Ghoul managed to get a drop on them and then escape. She had to stay and help Percy so he wouldn't die on her. After the whole mess with League meeting yesterday she hoped this would be more peaceful day. Sadly, no such luck. She wanted to carry him to the couch, but she noticed he started to snuggle to Zoe in his sleep. She remembered how he always woke back at Themyscira, hugging his comforter. Oh well... she brought them a blanket and covered them. It didn't escape her that former huntress actually reciprocated and also embraced him in her sleep. This brought smile to Amazon's face. _They will be up for a surprise when they wake up..._

It took the two otherworldly heroes another hour to wake up. Percy was first. Once he realized who he was hugging, he immediately let go, but this in turn caused Zoe to wake. She connected the dots and realized that they were both snuggling in sleep. She wanted to be angry, but it was actually strangely comforting. His body was warm and soft, serving as a nice pillow. Instead of hitting him like he expected, she turned to look Diana straight in her eyes.

"Not. A. Word. To. Anyone." She said through gritted teeth. Amazonian Princess giggled. Percy watched the exchange. Then, he noticed new outfit Zoe was wearing.

Eager to direct everyone's attention from the incident he spoke quickly. "Zoe, when did you managed to get a new super suit?"

Confused huntress looked down. "Oh! This. That is a gift from my lady."

"what? When did Lady Artemis manage to give this to you?"

"I guess when I used this..." She handed him the box of Olympian Pills.

"Oh!" His mouth formed almost a perfect circle.

"What is this?" Asked Diana as she noticed symbols of all the major gods.

"An apology from the Gods." Percy said. For a second he hesitated, not sure if he should explain everything, but he trusted Diana and Zoe most likely already knew about this. "When they sent me here they lied to me about some things, making sure that I would actually come here, not to mention countless other deceptions. Each of those contain a fraction of the essence of one of the gods. They quite literary make me a god for limited period of time." Diana was stunned at the revelation.

"Actually, after I used Athena's essence, I figured some things. Guess power of wisdom does come in handy." He continued. "Firstly, this world is full of energies, both magical and not. We demigods are connected to this energy directly. Our godly part is drawing straight from the source. It can be dangerous for stronger demigods unless proper steps are taken to shield them. When I got my father's trident it changed my body so I wouldn't die from too much power. When Cassie came, I bound her to Diana, who was already used to this energy and could serve as a filter." He paused to let that sink. Some residual traces of Athena's energy still influenced his personality, making him act a bit like a professor during lecture.

"But what about me?" Zoe asked confused.

"Well, your new body was created from shattered Riptide. I can only assume that it was already adapted to withstand the strain of greater power."

"So what you are saying is that all demigods in this world are overpowered in comparison to anything else?"

"Yes. If the theory I formed is correct any of the three of us could actually defeat superman. Also, Diana, you do not use your full potential yet. Well, I don't think any of us do. I believe we can do much, much more." He finished.

"There is something I wanted to tell you." Zoe said. "When I used the essence of my lady trying to heal you, I actually met with her face to face. She told me some things and then blessed me. She wouldn't accept my oath, but she said that if I really wanted to play a hero, she would want me to be prepared. She gave me this." She detached the bow from her back. There was still no quiver, but she just pulled the string back. As soon as she did that, an arrow flickered into existence. It was a beautiful silver arrow with jagged tip.

"Whoa. Nice." Percy admired the bow.

"Yes. And watch this." She focused for a moment. Arrow's tip turned into mixture of red and yellow. "I have my own arsenal of trick arrows."

"That is so cool."

"I must agree with Percy. This is a great weapon, suitable for warrior such as yourself." Diana also admired the bow.

"That is not everything." Zoe put the bow back, arrow disappeared without exploding. She crossed her arms in front of her chest, forming an 'X' from the bracelets she wore. He armor disappeared and she wore her normal clothes again. "Now I do not need to worry about carrying my super suit everywhere." Said Zoe excitedly. Percy wondered where did the serious and no-fun huntress went.

"But you will still need a mask." Diana said. Zoe shook her head.

"Nope" She gave them a grin. Percy wondered what exactly did she talk with Artemis about that her attitude to others changed so much. "The circlet I wear is creating my personal mist. Normal mortals won't be able to make the connection in their heads even if I will look the same. Unless I tell anyone about who I am, they will have hard time figuring it out." She explained.

"I would be jealous if I didn't have my own epic equipment." Percy joked.

"Yeah. There is one more thing I wanted to talk with you about." Diana started. "Yesterday, while you were celebrating the victory after battle, Justice League had a meeting. Batman received heavy scolding for his stubbornness and distrust. He really doesn't like you, you know." On that Percy scowled. "Anyway, in the end I called for the vote of no-confidence." There was a pause before she continued. "From today onward, Batman is no longer the leader of Justice league. He was also did out of the team. League elected captain atom as both new leader and person responsible for the team. You can imagine Bat is not happy about it." This put a smile on everyone's faces.

"good. Not that I don't like him... But I don't like him." Percy summarized.

"Maybe now you would consider joining the team? They miss you." Diana asked with voice full of hope. "Look. The league will be accepting new members at the end of December and you are the prime candidate after how you defeated Ares, saving the protegees.

"Hm... What do you think Zoe?" He turned to the huntress in question. She already knew everything there was to know about his standing in this world.

"Well. I think we could do this. What? You didn't think I would let you go there alone. There must be some balance. Males can't have all the fun." She joked and highfived Diana again. "But first, we are going after the shadows."

"What?" Both Wonder Woman and Neptune asked completely baffled by her declaration.

"Nobody attacks my friends and gets away with it." She said in protective tone. "I may have not exactly been on my best behavior toward you when we first met Percy, but you've proven that you are the only descent male I know. This Ra's Al'ghoul on the other hand is just a traitorous idiot. You gave him a chance to walk away and he chose to attack you. I will have none of that." She said in determination and Diana actually felt sorry for the guy. But only for a fraction of second before she remembered that he stabbed her favorite cousin, who she came to think of as a brother. "So where do I find the guy and who is going with me?" Zoe finished before putting on her full super suit. Percy pressed the buckle of his belt and he was in his armor too.

"You will find them on infinity island. I do not know exact location, but..."

"It's an island on the sea. That is all I needed to know." Neptune grinned. "Zoe, you will need a superhero name if you really want to do this seriously."

"I already thought about it." She smiled. "Call me huntress."

Diana wanted to protest, saying that this is the name of a retired criminal, but she gave up. After all there is more than one green lantern.

"Simple, elegant, easy to remember. I like it." Said Percy. "So with that done, what are we waiting for?"

"Wait! You can't just waltz in and kill them all!" Diana practically screamed. While she wasn't killing when it was justified, slaughtering island full of criminals was insane even for her. "Many of this people were taken from their homes and forced into this life. Raised into killing, never knowing any other option."

"Cool your head D. Who said anything about killing?" Percy asked light-heartedly. "I do not plan any mass murder at least until next Friday." He said in his sassy tone. "Seriously though, I will not go around slaughtering mooks if I can help it. My target is Ra's Al'ghoul. I want to get him a message. I do not appreciate what he did."

Zoe drawn her bow again and created another type of arrow, with blunt end. "It's enchanted to simulate injuries from the real arrows. If I hit someone in spot that would result in kill, he will be paralyzed for about an hour. Likewise if I hit an arm, it will go limp."

Diana looked at the two and shook her head. "It's still an island of trained assassins."

Percy just chuckled. "Zoe has four thousand years of experience in hunting all types of monsters. I am pretty sure if she wanted she could storm the place by herself."

Diana relented. "Fine, but I am going with you in case you go over your head. So want to enlighten me how do we find this place? It is protected by the very same enchantment that is placed on themyscira. Only if you already know it's exact location you are able to get there."

"Good thing we know someone who was there, right Huntress?" Percy said while pulling his phone and dialing a number. After two signals someone picked up. "Roy? I need a favor. Remember how you saved Doctor Sterling from infinity island..."

* * *

Like every day after school Artemis zeta-beamed to the star labs to visit Wally. He was stable, but his body had hard time regenerating the damage. Best scientists worked on finding a way to heal him faster, but it was a miracle he was still breathing. Even after he woke up, he would be paralyzed and need a pacemaker. She would give anything to get him back. The longer she spent with him, the more she realized that behind this first impression of immature boy there was golden heart and he was actually funny from time to time. If only he stopped chasing after every girl in ten mile radius proximity...

Suddenly, lights in the room flickered. Power was cut and machines stopped showing anything. While he was stable, she had no idea what would happen now that all the electronics were disabled. She tried to scream for help. She wanted to call the doctors, electricians, anyone, but no voice came from her throat. The darkness engulfed the room until the only object visible was the chair she was sitting and Wally laying in bed.

" **What are you willing to sacrifice? What would you give away to get him back?"** A dark voice came to her from emptiness.

"You can heal him?" She answered the question with another question. Her voice was full of hope, but she dreaded what would come next. In the past she read about demons and other mystical creatures. She wouldn't believe it back then, but now she met an actual demigod, a lord of order, lord of chaos and several other strange things. That tends to broaden the horizons.

" **For a price. What will you sacrifice for a boy who doesn't even love you back?"** This dark voice mocked her. Her heart suddenly pained. She remembered every time he ignored her and chased after M'gann who was not interested. Deep down she wished someone would go after her like that. Then she remembered when right after their adventure in tower of fate they talked in the trophy room. Sure he was still being goofy, but they connected for just brief moment. She was sure that there could be something more between them.

"What do you want?" She finally asked. In front of her appeared a necklace. It was shaped like three-bladed star formed from deltoids. Each 'arm' had a purple gem embed into it. They were held in place by circle in the middle and another ring around the height of the gems. Everything was hanging on the leather cord

" **Swear your allegiance to me and me alone. You will answer to my every command and you will do as I ask you to. You will not reveal the nature of this deal to anyone. In exchange, I will heal him and make sure that he sets his eyes on you.** " The voice spoke from darkness. At the last words he seemed amused, like he knew something she did not. She had no idea who that was and what was going on really.

Somewhere in the back of her head alarm bell rang. She was fighting with herself. She wanted to save Wally, but a small, sane part of her mind held her back. Why would she want to give up her life for this irritating boy. He was nothing but trouble.

 _But We want trouble._ Her voice spoke in her head. _That is why We joined the team. To find trouble. Adventure. This is an adventure welcoming us. A brand new adventure._

 _But... We would give up everything really. We don't know what he will want us to do. What if even if we get Wally, he will leave me? We will sacrifice our freedom for nothing..._ Artemis reasoned in her head. She tried to fight the urge to just grab the necklace, which she guessed was what will seal the deal.

_So we should abandon the chance because we fear abandonment? because our sister left us, saying we are too weak? Not everyone is her. We are stronger now. It is time to prove it and make a decision._

Artemis took another look at Wally. He was sleeping so peacefully that you could forget that his body was literary fighting for survival at each moment. He had nothing to blame for it but himself really. He was rash and didn't think before acting (or eating in this case) but that is exactly how she liked him. She grabbed the necklace and the voice in darkness laughed.

" **Good. You made your choice. Once you put it on, you will be be bound to serve me. As long as you will wear it, the deal will be on. If you ever take it off, your friend here will return to this state, or even worse."** He let the threat hang in the air. **"Do not betray me, or you will see him suffer through fate worse than death. He will beg you to end it."** She shivered at the thought. An image of Wally all in pain, with his organs burning, appeared before her eyes. The memory she so much wanted to forget returned to her. That was one of the scariest moment in her life. She was powerless. She couldn't do anything to help him or even soothe the pain. A bit reluctantly she put on the necklace. Some small part of her rational mind tried to fight, but she made a decision already and she wasn't willing to back away. Once the clip was locked and star hanged loosely about an inch above her breast she suddenly woke up.

She fell asleep in the room, holding Wally's hand. She looked around, but no one was here except the two of them. For a moment she dismissed this as a very strange dream, but then, when she moved her head she felt something on her neck. looking down she noticed the very amulet from her dream. _So it was real... Or at lest semi-real_. Her train of thoughts was cut short when suddenly Wally's grip on her hand tightened. She immediately looked at him to see his eyes open.

"Hello there beautiful. Who are you waiting for?" wally asked, still weakened from the whole ordeal. She noticed small sparks of lightning jumping around his body. One stung her in the hand, but it almost didn't hurt.

"You are awake!" She screamed and was ready to jump and hug him, but stopped herself remembering that not so long ago his internal organs were badly burned.

"Yes and I must say this is the best way to wake up: looking at beautiful girl holding my hand." He tried to get up, but she stopped him.

"Where do you think you are going? First you need to be properly checked up."

"Whatever you say sweetheart."

They looked in each other eyes and slightly melted. Neither realized that a man with red eyes clad in yellow version of Flash outfit observed them through camera. Said man crashed his coffee mug in anger. Ares just ruined everything he worked so hard to put in motion.

* * *

**Infinity Island**   
**October 2, 18:33**

Ra's Al'ghoul was preparing for teleconference. Revers-Flash had some problem that he demanded The light to solve. After he dealt with Percy he was put in good mood so he voted to agree and hear what Eobard wanted. He stood in secret room, filled with light blue panels that could easily change color. This was a state of art technology. One of the benefits he had from joining forces with others was that together they had easier access getting what they wanted and their goals aligned.

Suddenly, the whole island shook in it's core. Immediately, he activated the camera view. What appeared in front of him froze the blood in his body. It was not possible. He couldn't be here. The poison should have killed him in minutes. Not even ambrosia could save him. Not even Lazarus pit could fully negate the effects of the poison, leaving the victims in between life and death in constant struggle. Yet, there he was, wrecking his island. Perseus 'Neptune' Jackson was sound and breathing, here to get his revenge. In that moment Ra's knew he was dead man walking. Even if he himself survived, The League of Shadows would be shattered.

At this moment Shiva, Deathstroke, Sportsmaster, Cheshire and Sensei run into the chamber.

"Forgive my intrusion o great one, but we have a problem." Shiva started.

"I am aware of the situation at hand." The demons head tried to regain his composure and not show the fear. The sight of sea-green eyes starring directly into his came from his memory. The threat that was left hanging drained his breath. Ra's Al'ghoul, man who run shadows for over six hundred years was afraid of what was coming. Ares briefed them on his misadventures and his chances weren't high.

"What should we do Great One?" Cheshire asked. She was cursing the day she decided to ghost on Percy. Ra's gave her ultimatum. Either she returns to the league of shadows or she will be banished and bounty will be put on her head. She obediently returned, leaving without a word. She took advantage of whatever caused Percy to run in the middle of the day.

Ra's took a deep breath. "Evacuate the island. Try and save as many as you can. We must abandon this place."

"We aren't going to fight? This punk should be put in his place!" Sportsmaster wanted to settle the score with Neptune.

"Fool! If you think you can actually take him down without some sort of specialized weapon you can just as well go and try beat superman with a newspaper." Cheshire growled at her father.

"She is right. This is not the fight we can win." Deathstroke said, pointing at the feed. Now, side by side with Percy fought Wonder Woman, using her lasso to tie the assassins, and unknown heroine who shot arrows at them. Arrows did not kill them, but they all were knocked out even after one hit. Either some poison or her bow was magical. Either was they were outmatched.

"What am I supposed to tell others to uphold my reputation? What of the Shadows reputation? After this we will loose all credibility." Sportsmaster was more worried about his reputation than saving his ass.

"I gave you an order!" Ra's said in irritated voice. "Now execute it without further questions." They all bowed to him and spread, hoping to not encounter any of the heroes. Out of the three wonder woman seemed like the least scary and that said something.

* * *

Percy, Zoe and Diana stormed the island on dusk. The Huntress fought with deadly precision and no emotions. She was walking though the island, taking out anyone on her way. The whole island was shaking, buildings were falling apart. Neptune did not even need to use his trident. Most of the job was already done for him by raging earthquake. If he wanted, he could bring the island down with everyone on board, but he couldn't be sure that there aren't some innocents here. He just went on with punching the assassins that Zoe left for him. She seemed tense, like something happened when he passed out and she used Artemis' essence, but he didn't ask. It seemed pretty personal. Good thing this world had plenty of ways for her to work it all out. The one she seemed to like best so far was to shoot arrows at assassins, but maybe they would find her something else. At this rate they would run out of criminals before she run out of arrows. Maybe because she had infinite arrows, but he meant figuratively. Diana closed the march, acting as a rear guard. She chose to let the two of them have fun. it gave her opportunity to see how well they worked together.

At first when she thought about it it struck her as wrong for unknown reason, but then Percy compared it to raid on some drughouse or illegal fighting ring, something police did every time. Justice League charter did give her jurisdiction on the international water, thanks to Atlantis input on the matter. Assembly was scarred enough of the unknown force when they first appeared that a special addition was made to already existing U.N. Charter that gave heroes some authority there. It worked only with international criminals, but League of Shadows definitely fits that definition.

The three heroes forced their way through the island, leaving most assassins paralyzed or badly beaten. Finally, they got to some meditation garden where the familiar group of contract killers greeted them. There were two more peoples with them. A woman who was clearly related to Ra's and an old man in kimono, holding a sword. He was blind on the one eye and had several large scars on his body.

"So... You came to infinity island to join the league of Shadows, or perhaps to find your own death?" Asked the old man.

"Neither, but if you do not shut up, I will show you yours." Zoe said with an arrow drawn. "Where is Ra's Al'Ghoul?"

"The great one is busy and you would do well to show a proper respec..." Thalia never finished because blunt arrow hit her leg, causing excruciating pain to overcome her. She fell on the ground, clutching the place where arrow hit. Said projectile already turned into moonlight and disappeared.

"I would listen to her if I were you. I don't think I will be able to stop her from using the ones with sharp points." Percy joked.

After their first superhero act back at the mall he had to sit down with her and explain the rules in this world. No killing irritating males, no maiming random boys on the street just for looking at her, limit threatening the pizza delivery guys or they would slowly starve, this kind of things. She had really hard time understanding the whole 'knock the bad guys out' rule at first. While he was more accustomed to sparing lives, she spent millennia killing monsters and males that trespassed. Times have changed a bit for hunters too, but not just enough. Finally, she accepted that there were limits. He didn't exactly agree with it himself, but this wasn't their world and they had to deal with it. If given the reason to, they would both take down for example Joker permanently.

"You know who I am. If I wanted, I could wipe this island of the face of the ocean and none of you would be able to stop me." He said in calm voice, but threat hanged in the air. Cheshire took a step back.

"Well. I don't know about you, but I am convinced to just let him pass and get the hell out of here." She turned to where her father and Slade were standing. "Bye boys. I would say it was a pleasure knowing you, but it would be a lie." She turned back to Percy. "Call me maybe some other time, when we are off work. I liked that night." She purred, enjoying the angry face Zoe made before jumping into the shadows.

"TRAITOR!" Screamed Thalia after her. Percy was completely obvious to five trained assassins in front of him. He turned to his companions.

"It was nothing. We had to share a bed and woke up hugging. I swear it's just it, nothing more. There was..."

Sportsmaster smiled under his mask before interrupting him. "Don't swear. I heard it's not polite punk." He really reminded Percy of Ares. They were incredibly similar in demeanor. Both stupid, overconfident and rash. And then there was this glimmer of intelligence, showing that they actually had some skill. He had his javelin pulled and Percy noticed that they were all a bit tense. Zoe did too, but she was quicker to make a connection.

"They are stalling us. Covering their master's escape."

"Very good kid. You would make perfect assassin. Sadly, I think old sensei should teach you a lesson!" The old man Jumped at Zoe, but she sidestepped and bashed him in the back with palm of her hand, sending him into the ground. Other assassins took it as a signal to attack and jumped at the heroes. Percy Got three he faced before and Diana got Thalia.

Percy was moving like a stream of water, swiftly dodging between all of three of his opponents. Deathstroke, Shiva and Sportsmaster tried to work on some kind of synergy, but their attacks did more bad than good. Shiva slashed with her swords, but the strike was intercepted with trident and redirected at Slade, who in turn had to block, foregoing his own initiative. Sportsmaster tossed his exploding Javelin, but Neptune caught it and without loosing any momentum sent it flying. It hit into the doors of the palace on this island, creating a hole in the doors. Angry assassin rushed at hero with another javelin drawn, but Percy kicked him, sending him flying into the nearby tree, knocking him unconscious.

Diana had to deal with daughter of the demon. She had to admit that the woman was well trained. Still, she was no match for an amazon. Fight would probably be longer if not for the sound of helicopter blades. Four different machines flew in four directions of the world. This effectively ended the fight as all assassins dropped smoke pellets and disappeared.

"Talk about stalling." Percy tried to joke, but they all felt a bit beaten. There was no point in chasing them. Even if Neptune and Huntress could fly, there were only three of them and four helicopters. Good chances, but not good enough. They still managed to get a healthy amount of Shadows in custody, as well as Sensei and Sportsmaster, two high-profile targets. In matter of less than an hour, this island will be swarming with law enforcement.

* * *

In a hidden underground bunker Ra's Al'Ghoul awaited the storm to pass. His decoys worked and heroes were sure that he was off the island. This place was pretty much impossible to find now that he locked himself here. There was enough food to survive until he could safely travel away.

Seven screens lightened up in front of them, revealing faces of his closest allies. Vandal Savage, Lex Luthor, Queen Bee, Brain, Klarion, Black Manta and helmet of Ares, now barely able to speak. The small amount of his essence clanged to this plane of existence, trying to maintain anchored. He was able to communicate through his helmet, but he was very limited beyond that.

Next to vandal Savage stood Eobard Thrawn, also known as Reverse-Flash. He was the one that demanded the meeting with the light and they agreed to hear him out. "This is outrageous. I spend months putting the scheme in motion, only for it to be foolishly exploited by Ares!" RF said with anger.

"Would you care to elaborate?" Luthor asked, clearly amused by the conflict between one of their agents and the god of war.

"I spent months trying to get everything right. Can you imagine how hard it was to get my hands on ambrosia and plant it in place where this half-witted speedster would eat it? Then I had to constantly monitor him in Star Labs, dosing him and this girlfriend of his with pheromones to accelerate their relationship, all while making sure he does _not_ recover by giving him a serum that temporarily weakened his connection to the speed force." He took a breath so in the rush of emotions he would not start speaking in super speed. "I effectively removed two members of this covert team that caused you such trouble. I ensured that the right version of future would come to existence, but now it is all thawed by this supposed god of war."

"What did you do Ares?" Asked Klarion, who also took great pleasure in this whole ordeal. "Gave him a heart attack when he saw your face?"

" **I gained a new operative for the light, one that will without doubt follow every order. I planted the seed of doubt in their both heads and exploited the blossoming relationship to ensure they will serve the light before anyone else."**

"And what exactly did you do? How did you even reach them with your power?" Queen Bee suspected that Ares wasn't being completely honest with them about everything, but then again no one here was.

" **I used resources already at my disposal. The Amulet of Treachery. I enhanced it. As long as she follows my orders he lives. What she doesn't know is that she lives only as long as he follows my order. If he decides to oppose me, the necklace will choke her. I made a pact with both of them, promising them the love that was already there and his well being that would also return. Your serum was slowly becoming ineffective doctor. He was overcoming it."** Ares gave a dark laugh.

"No. That is not possible. It can't be overcome unless... unless... I would have to run more tests, but I... I have no idea how is that possible." They all knew he was lying to them, but for now they ignored him. Silently, they agreed to monitor him closer.

"If that is the only matter..." Vandal started, but Ra's interrupted him.

"I have news about Perseus." He tried to gather his words and finally explained the whole thing. "Not only he survived the poison, but also he stormed the Infinity Island, taking out most of the League of Shadows and forcing me to take drastic measures to escape. I await extraction at the bunker."

"that is indeed unfortunate turn of events. Is there any other way to deal with the boy?" Savage, although he didn't show it in any way, became seriously worried about his plans. This young man was the greatest unknown in the whole equation.

"Working on a suitable host for Ares are on it's way. If we succeed, he will squash him like a bug." Luthor informed. "My calculation shows that combined power of host body and Ares' godly essence will be powerful enough to face entire league and win."

"Excellent. Then there is nothing to worry about." Said Savage before teleconference ended and each party returned to their own work.


	15. Setting the stage

Wally found himself in the void. There was nothing but darkness. He could remember glimpses of events that occurred not so long ago. Him eating weird brownie, the pain of his organs slowly burning, then a moment of peace followed by more torture. He spent hours wriggling while his body was practically on fire. Most of it was the same. He didn't care to remember. But there were some moments he did remember. A beautiful blonde girl, standing close to his bed. _Artemis!_ He opened his eyes, hoping to wake from this, but he woke in the very same void, only now he was wearing a hospital gown instead of his normal clothes.

 **"What are you willing to sacrifice? What would you give away to go back before this happen? To have it like it never was?"** A dark and mysterious voice sounded.

"Who are you? Invading the minds of others is not cool dude." Wally asked, looking into the void. He tried to pinpoint the unknown person, but it came from all around him. He tried to move, but his body was not responding to his commands.

" **Curious little brat, aren't you? My name is not important."** The voice chuckled and image of Artemis appeared. She was sitting on a chair, frozen. About five feet behind her there was a gun pointed at the back of her head. There was no one holding it, but Wally could tell that it was about to fire. He wanted to rush there and save her, but his body was not working. A gunshot could be heard. He tapped into the speed force. Everything seemed to slow down, but he was unable to even lift a finger. " **Ah. You do care about her. It's a shame you had no chance to explore the feelings you two shared before this."**

Something in speedster's mind clicked. "Wait! This isn't real. It's all in my head." He started to concentrate, trying to wake up, but no matter what, he had no possibility.

" **Yes. And no. This..."** Wally could only guess that it referred to Artemis being shot. He was still holding onto the speed force like a life-line, trying to figure out a way to save her. " **This might not be real. But it could. She is after all a heroine. This could happen every day. And you are powerless to save her."**

"N-no! She is strong. She can protect herself. Besides, why would I even care?" He tried to bluff himself out, but it didn't work. Suddenly, a three-bladed necklace appeared on her neck.

**"She made her choice. She wanted to save you, but what are you willing to do to save her?"**

Wally wanted to protest, to stall, to reject this, but he couldn't one look at her face and he found it impossible. Kent Nelson's words sounded in his head. ' _Find your own little spitfire, one who won't let you get away with nothin'.'_ He remembered how she scowled him about his actions, his stupidity. Another set of images appeared before his eyes. Her, sitting next to hospital bed on which he was, cursing his stupidity, crying. She was angry at him. Only now it hit him. She didn't hate him and did it to spite him. Maybe at first. But she really did it, because she cared about him and didn't want to see him hurt, which is exactly what she was seeing now. Wally West, Kid Flash, laying in bed unconscious and barely alive. The greatest torture for her. _To hell with the consequences._

"Fine. What do you want?"

" **What will you offer?"** The voice spoke in amusement. Wally almost physically felt the triumph of whoever this was.

"Same thing she did. I know she made some deal with you." It was a wild guess, but his intuition gave him an idea.

" **You are smarter than they give you credit for, Punk. Yes. She offered her service in exchange for your life."** Mysterious person sounded amused.

"What!? You can't do that! I didn't agree to this!" Every muscle in his body received a jolt of energy as he tried to move to her at speed greater than ever before. The bullet was almost there. Necklace, now resting on her chest was shining with a bit of purple light.

" **It's not yours to decide. She made her choice. What is yours?"**

Wally did not have too much time to think. "I want to you to guarantee that she won't be hurt. She is to walk unharmed from this deal."

The chuckle turned into near-maniacal laughter, sending chills down KF's spine. This was good, because he actually felt it. " **Fine."** A ring with mars' symbol appeared in front of him. " **As long as you wear this ring our deal is in power. You will follow my orders and in exchange she will be safe, protected and reciprocate your feelings. Take it off for too long and..."** Suddenly necklace around Artemis' neck started to choke her. It wrapped around her neck and slowly led her to the death. In panic, Wally put on the ring. Immediately, it all stopped. He felt legs and hands work again. Without second thought, he dashed, tackling her before bullet passed near his head. They both stumbled down, but before either touched the ground (or whatever as they were in dark void), he woke up.

He felt Artemis holding his hand and he couldn't resist slightly squishing it, giving her signal that he is awake. He opened his eyes and looked at her. He noticed that she was indeed wearing the necklace, but decided to drop the matter for now.

"Hello there beautiful. Who are you waiting for?" He asked, still weakened from the whole ordeal. He felt small sparks of lightning jumping around his body. Speed-force was repairing the damage done to his body almost in an instant.

"You are awake!" She screamed and looked ready to jump and hug him, but stopped herself. This saddened him. He would want nothing more than to be in her embrace right now. This was a bit strange. Before this whole thing, he would only have eyes on M'gann, but now she was nothing but a distant memory. But he didn't care about it one bit. Only girl that mattered was Artemis now.

"Yes and I must say this is the best way to wake up: looking at beautiful girl holding my hand." Wally tried to get up, but she stopped him.

"Where do you think you are going? First you need to be properly checked up."

"Whatever you say sweetheart."

They looked in each other eyes and slightly melted. Neither realized that a man with red eyes clad in yellow version of Flash outfit observed them through camera. Said man crashed his coffee mug in anger. Ares just ruined everything he worked so hard to put in motion.

* * *

**Jump City**   
**October 5, 19:46**

Percy was sitting in the main room with Zoe, watching the evening news. Right now the presenter was talking about large meteor rain that should be visible from most of the United States area. After their little stunt with the league of shadows they earned quite a fame. Captain Atom gave Wonder Woman some scolding over the fact she went on such dangerous mission without proper backup, but she in turn just handed him video from island surveillance cameras. His face when he saw how two young heroes dealt with everything while she sat back to observe was priceless. He welcomed them back to the team and gave them two days before they would go back. In the meantime information of Wally's miracle return to health got Percy into great mood.

"Do you think they will accept me?" Zoe suddenly asked.

"Why wouldn't they? You are smart, strong, brave and kick ass better than even me." He grinned, which earned him a gentle strike in the arm. Nothing strong enough to leave a mark, but he felt that. _At least she doesn't send a jolts of lightning while doing that. Thalia really should work on controlling her powers._

"I am serious. You were vouched for by wonder woman herself after you trained with her. The best I can get is your word."

Percy chuckled and switched to another news channel. Images of her walking through the island full of shadows while sniping everything that moved appeared. "I think this will serve as enough of the invitation. You have nothing to worry about. Besides. You are like four thousands years old. Don't tell me you got stage-fright."

Her expression darkened. "No. It's just that... I am not sure I am cut for the team work."

"Said the lieutenant of the hunt who worked with group of man-hatting girls for at least as long as since the foundation of Rome." Percy was aware how stupid and grammatically wrong this sentence was just after it left his mind, but there was some twisted logic behind it.

"What? Why you used foundation of Rome as a reference point?" Zoe long gave up on trying to figure out his train of thoughts. He was the most ADHD demigod she met and she once encountered a daughter of Hermes on quadruple rissteretto. Not the best memories. She was so annoying and so fast...

"Well... Chiron told us that Heracles fought in the Troian war. Since after you were banished you lost your immortality and you look pretty beau... I meant young, so you joined hunt shortly after. The survivor of Troian war Aeneas was the founder of Rome, so by this account it must have been around this time. Give or take twenty years." He summarized in one breath. He was proud of recreating his train of thoughts, which was not always possible. There was this one time when teacher asked him about a entry in the book and he somehow got lost in thoughts and instead started to hum Harry Potter intro. The entry was about fall of Berlin Wall...

Zoe giggled at his logic. It was of course wrong, but she did not have a heart to tell him that. "Let's go with that. But still, my first years with the huntress weren't the greatest. I actually had hard time fitting in. Back at the garden my sisters and I weren't taught how to shoot a bow or hunt or sneak around or even sharpen arrows. While my Lady's blessing helped, I still had to learn this. Let's just say I wasn't a very fast learner." She scowled at Percy's chuckle, but decided to continue. "I didn't want to work with others and trained in every free moment. I preferred to act alone. I wanted to prove that I was actually worthy of the grace I received and make sure I didn't need to rely on anyone. It took me almost five years to warm up to the thought of not being alone. Other huntresses didn't help much. They thought I needed space so decided to give it to me. I was actually pretty bossy and irritating back then, can you imagine?" This joke earned a full out laugh from Percy. She just rolled her eyes.

"I... I think I can... Imagine alright..." He managed to say while giving a healthy laugh. He calmed himself after a bit. She wanted to continue, but he stopped her. "It doesn't matter. You changed. You grew up. You led the hunters through almost all the history. Look... If you really want to back up, then fine. We don't need to join them to help people. It's up to you. But they are our friends. Remember the evening after the battle with deadly plants? We had fun, right? They are great and will accept you with open arms. Just please don't castrate them?" He more asked than stated at the end.

"I will think about it. No promises. Just because I find you tolerable, doesn't mean they will all be the same." She said, but also gave him a heartwarming smile.

"Well, we will still live here. That is unless you prefer to move to the cave full time. Like I said this was supposed to be temporary."

"No needs. It grew on me. I like it here. Besides they don't have such a great TV." She said and turned her eyes on the screen. "See if there is any movie."

"Disney's Hecules is pl..." He didn't get to finish the sentence before silver arrow flew through holographic screen and bounced from now-reinforced window. They were pretty tough before, but had a pretty crucial flaw: sonic discharges crushed them. Now their new windows were made from some kryptonian weave that was supposedly almost indestructible. A gift from superman. "I take it's a no. Okay... Oh! There is Finding Nemo! Can we watch this one? Please!" Percy smiled at her and gave her baby seal face.

Zoe was still angry. Why out of every things different between two worlds Disney had to remain the same? It's like some multi-dimensional conspiracy trying to take over all worlds. She hated how they made Heracles into a hero. He was a monster who used others to achieve his goals. "Fine." She was still frowning while movie started. After it finished Percy somehow got his hands on sequel and they watched it too. Then there was another movie. Near the end she felt herself drifting away to the realm of Morpheus. She noticed Percy was already already asleep. He looked almost peaceful. She smiled at the small stream of drool forming at the corner of his mouth. He really did drool in his sleep.

Next day they yet again woke hugging each other. Strangely, Zoe found it quite comforting.

* * *

**Alaska**   
**October 6, 10:33**

While most of meteors burned in the atmosphere, one particular managed to survive and crash in a frozen lake last night. Area was rarely populated, but one old man lived in close proximity. This man spent most of his days just fishing is said lake or, if previous day he had had a particularly good catch, he traveled to nearby town about two miles south to sell his catch.

Like usually, the Man walked to the lake, planning on cutting a hole in new place, but the whole icecap was gone, crushed. Guided by his curiosity, he walked closer to the body of water and noticed that many fish were tossed onto the sand. He peered a bit and noticed an eerie glow from the bottom of the lake. Something was in there. He tried to get a better look, but he slipped and fell into ice-cold water. His clothes immediately soaked in water and started to drag him down. His muscles were in shock and he lost control over his motor functions. Slowly, he descended in cold water. He could feel his consciousness slip away, but he fought and tried to stay awake, to figure something out. His vision was clouded, but before he passed out he noticed a colossal monster. The surprise was enough to take away last strips of control he had. His heart stopped from the cold and life escaped his body.

Whatever this creature was, it was big. Towering as high as 9 feet tall, this gray-skinned beast had large white spikes all over his body. Some formed protective shells around his limbs or more important areas. The only piece of clothing it was wearing were a pair of green shorts made of some heat-resistant material. His face was ugly and also covered in spikes forming something akin to human facial hair. His eyes were closed, but there was a little bit of red glow from under his eyelids. This was the ultimate creature, the perfect killer, the harbinger of end. This was Doomsday.

* * *

**Mount Justice**   
**October 6, 13:16**

Percy and Zoe were training hand-to-hand combat in the holo-ring while waiting for others to finally come. It was Wednesday so the rest of their teammates were at school. M'gann probably already planned a welcome party, but since they didn't want to waste another day watching TV or fixing history books, both demi-gods decided to get there earlier and train.

Percy was now wearing a tank top and shorts. His belt was in camouflage mode, making it into simple cord around his waist. Demigod's naturally tanned muscles were now covered in sweat. Zoe was wearing T-shirt and leggins, showing much less skin. She was also pretty tired. Her hair was like always made into single long braid which she threw over her shoulder, but it was a bit messed from almost three hours of training now. Her two bracelets were shining, reflecting some of the light.

She threw a punch, aiming at Percy's mid-section, but he dodged with extreme agility, catching her wrist and doing a judo-flip. Mid-air huntress shifted her center of gravity and did a 180 flip, landing on her legs. She then did a swipe, trying to take advantage of her opponent's surprise, but demigod jumped over her leg and used this as an advantage to launch a hammerhead strike. She crossed her hands in front of her blocking the attack. She made sure to will her outfit not to appear. The moment his attack met with her block, Zoe pushed him away. She expected him to land on his back, but he instead did a somersault, landing on his hands and then with another back-flip he was back on his legs and in combat stance. This created some distance between them.

Both started to circle one another, taking their time to look for opening and catch their breath. Percy noticed that she putting too much weight to her left leg and decided to exploit it. He lunged at her. He faked the right hook and instead did kick into her weighted leg. To his surprise before the attack connected she shifted her balance and dodged the kick, at the same time punching him in the chest. He tried to block the strike, but doing so he put himself of balance. Even if the punch did not connect, the force was enough to send him tumbling onto the floor of holo-ring. A bright red 'DEFEAT' sign appeared over his head.

Zoe walked over to him and extended her hand, offering him help with standing up. He smiled and took it.

"That put us 8-8." She had a look of triumph on her face.

"Yes. That was a brilliant fight." Came Black Canary's voice. She watched them train from the very beginning, always giving them pointers. "Great deception at the end Huntress, but it was risky. If not executed perfectly, you would be the one to loose. Great tactic up until the end Neptune, but putting everything into one strike is risky." She smiled at them. "You are both expert martial artists. I haven't watched this good fights since Batman battled Lady Shiva." Black Canary was complementing them, causing Zoe to smile and Percy to get a bit uncomfortable.

"It can't be that good..." He tried to defend.

"You know there is such thing as too much modesty?" Zoe joked. Over past three weeks she and Percy became quick friends. The better she knew him, the more assured she was that he was nothing like other males she encountered. Loyal, modest, helpful, brave... He was nothing like Heracles. He was a hero in every meaning of this word. He was also honest, never hiding anything from her. It pained her that she couldn't do the same, but her Lady asked her not to tell anyone about their little talk. Artemis said she can't order her anything, but it was for the best right now. Percy few times asked her what happened when she used the pill of godly essence and she always had to lie about it. He was honest about everything so far. He even openly showed her his weakness when he told her about his arrival. She remembered how she hugged her after this, back in the mall. Then he did the same when she was breaking apart from all the pressure of... everything that happened. He didn't take advantage of her weakness, instead been there for her. He was a friend she really needed.

"Zoe? Zoe?!" She snapped out of her thoughts and noticed Percy waving his hand in front of her eyes. "Earth to Zoe Nightshade. I asked are you up for another round."

"Oh. Sorry. Got lost in my thoughts." She got a bit embarrassed, but it quickly passed. "I think this is enough for today for me." She gave him a smile. "But help yourself. I am sure this thing has some holographic robots to smash or something." She was surprised how easily it came to her to get a grasp on this world's technology.

"Yeah, but I don't know how to program them." He gave both women a sheepish smile.

"Then learn" She tossed and walked toward now fixed showers. She was already at the exit when an unfamiliar voice spoke.

_Recognized: Artemis B0-6  
Recognized: Kid Flash B0-3_

"Hello people! Your favorite Wallman is back in the game! New! Improved! Better than ever!" A yellow blur was flying all over the cave now, like it was looking for something. Percy was chuckling at the confusion that appeared on Zoe's face. Finally, she had enough. When whoever that was about to pass next to her, she extended her hand and with inhuman reflex grabbed him by the neck and lifted in the air. "Oh! Hello beauty. What brings you here?" He was about to start flirting with her, which would probably end with castration, but image of Artemis appeared before his eyes.

"Try hitting on me and I will make you sing in soprano for the rest of your life _boy."_ The last word sounded like it was the worst offense she could find.

"Whoa. Someone is on..." He wanted to joke, but suddenly he found himself without air.

"Think carefully what you want to say _boy._ I dare you. Give me a reason." Wally knew that Percy had a wolf stare that could give the 'patented batman stare' a run for his money, but this girl put them both to shame. He tried to gulp, but her hand was gripping his throat too tight.

"Zoe. Put him down. Guy just got out of hospital." Percy finally stopped laughing. Artemis had to sit down or risk falling down from the laughing.

"So he better watch out or I will send him back there faster than he can say ' _flirt'."_ She looked him in the eyes. "Is that clear enough for you _boy?_ "

Unable to speak he energetically nodded his head. She let him go and he fell on his butt with a loud Thud!, generating another wave of laughter from Percy and Artemis. When KF finally managed to stand up he made sure to keep his distance from the scary woman.

Percy walked to Wally and hugged him. "It's good to see you back on your feet." He let him go and his expression darkened. "Listen. I am really sorry for this mess I put you through... If it wasn't for me, you would never have..."

Wally cut him there. "What are you talking about man? It wasn't your fault. No one could prevent that..."

Percy was still in really bad mood. "I could. If I didn't rage and run away, I could collect my things and stop it. If I just accept being a god instead of running away I could..." He received a slap on his face. He saw Artemis standing in front of him.

"Ugh! Stop blaming yourself. It wasn't your fault. It wasn't Wally's fault. It wasn't nobody's fault...

Zoe chimed in. "Actually, I think that the last one was double negative, so you are saying it was someone's fault." She grinned, taking pleasure in catching her on mistake.

"You shut up." Artemis snapped and Zoe. She noticed that Percy was still gloomy and decided to get sweet revenge. "Instead of finding flaws in people speech you would do better job cheering up your boyfriend." The emerald-clad archer grinned at the two.

Both Percy and Zoe immediately forgot about everything and blushed deep red. He started to mumble something under his breath that nobody could decipher. She on the other hand once she got over initial embarrassment started to fume with anger. She remained silent, but inside her head there was a giant train of thoughts.

 _"How dare this... This... How dare she assume I would ever break my oath. I am sworn maiden, servant of... I am a huntress. How dare this little girl suggest that I am dating some Male? As if I would ever decide to date anyone."_ Even in her mind she was babbling incoherently. She couldn't even get grasp on her thoughts. " _But on the other hand Percy is not like other males..."_ She caught herself actually thinking about it. " _He is still a boy, but he is honorable, brave, loyal, humble, honest, handsome... WAIT WHAT AM I THINKING?!"_ She wanted to blame it on Eros or Aphrodite, but neither could do anything in this world. She was about to overheat from the rage and her mind started to boil. That had to be it. She could never fall for any Male. Not again. Never again... Right? _"Sure Percy is a great friend and proved that he is different, but to fall for him? We know each other for what? Three weeks now. It can't happen that fast. Not possible..."_

Percy finally managed to deal with his embarrassment and turned to Zoe, who was sending Artemis a death glare, but the girl was practically unfazed by it. Wally on the other hand looked like he wanted to cower behind whatever was closest (Artemis) and stay there until scary lady was gone. Demigod walked to Zoe and put a hand on her shoulder. This finally broke her train of thoughts, but she was still glaring daggers in the general direction where Artemis and Wally stood.

"If you ever even try to suggest such things again, I will..." She was about to threaten the other archer with some torture or death, but Percy stopped her.

"Zoe. Calm down okay? You are turning new shades of red and none of them are the ones you see at night." He joked, but nobody cached onto his idea. It did cause Zoe to break the eye contact and instead send him a confused look. "Shade. Night. Zoe Nightshade." Percy tried to explain, but it only earned him a hit in his arm. Like always, no mark left but it actually hurt.

"Now I need to finally get to the showers. If you excuse me." Zoe said nonchalantly and walked away.

"Talk about temper." Wally said once he thought she was far away to hear him, but to his surprise the huntress actually turned around and sent him a death glare.

"Want to add something, _boy?_ " This caused Wally to whimper and run behind Artemis, who just rolled her eyes and stood there, ready to protect Kid Flash. Zoe just smiled and walked away, this time for real.

"Ugh. Where did you even find her Perce?" Artemis asked the remaining demigod. He laughed and pointed at the couch.

"Maybe let's sit. This is a long story."

They did as he suggested and listened when he described events that procured while the two young heroes stayed out of the business. They were both anxious when he told them who was Ares. Inside, they both made a connection between this and mysterious voice. Especially Wally once he heard about how god of war loves to overuse the word 'punk'. Neither could say anything. They didn't even talk about it between themselves. Artemis already had one big secret she kept from everyone. Now this... She didn't want to tell Wally. If he knew that she agreed to betray everyone he might have rejected her. He on the other hand already knew everything and was too conflicted about it to face her about it now. He wanted to wait at least until it he knew what to think about it. He couldn't really blame her. He made almost the very same deal. They both did it to save the other and now they had to deal with this Ares guy.

Percy skipped few details himself. There was no need for them to know what god of war showed him in visions or that Zoe came back butt naked. He had a hunch that if either of them ever found out, they would use it in argument against her and whoever did it would end up in hospital. Then Percy would probably join them. After he was done explaining what happened in the bank of Perez, he told them about his second encounter with Ares, back at Bayou Bartholomew.

"No way!" Wally laughed. "I call bullshit. Gathering the water from a mile radius? Earthquake magnitude 8.7? That kind of power could level whole cities."

"Besides nobody would believe you took down whole 'Injustice League' with one swipe of your hand." Artemis was also laughing.

"Well, since I came here, I keep getting stronger. I have no idea what is the limit of my powers and if there is even one..."

"That makes no sense. Wonder Woman is supposed to be a half-god and half-amazon. This would put her one above anyone. How can you topple that power?" Artemis was trying to reason.

"Well, I was always one of the strongest demigods back in my world. In here... I feel like I got power of all the oceans at my disposal." He smiled.

Wally frowned. "Yeah... Gods, 'power of the oceans', what next? Giant dogs?" Percy wanted to tell him about Mrs. O'Leary, but he continues to rant. "I can accept you are from an alternate dimension. I saw weirder things. But the whole 'demigod' business? That is just one. Big. Joke." He accented each word. "You can't expect us to suddenly believe that Greek Gods are the only real ones. Heck. Egyptian gods were there earlier. And what about Christian God? Are all the other religions just lies?" He was in his rant mode. Even if nobody noticed it, in his eyes appeared a speck of burnt red. Anger started to cloud his mind.

Percy just grinned at the outburst. He has seen worse. "Well... Funny story..." He paused trying to figure out best way to say it when Artemis interrupted.

"Wait! You are trying to tell us other gods exist too?" She wanted to say some more, but Percy started talking.

"Well it looks like it. I mean I met some of Egyptian gods and Annabeth told me that her cousin is Norse Demigod." He couldn't help but still sadden a little bit at the mention of Annabeth. "So yeah. There is that."

Wally was about to explode. "There is no such thing as magic. There is no such thing as Gods. If you ask me they are just some really powerful race of aliens with highly advanced tech that decided to play gods for some backwater planet."

Percy decided to relent and not get into heated argument on theology. "Maybe you are right, but it doesn't change the fact that people from my dimension tend to get little... Overpowered in this world. Just like kryptonians with the yellow sun." They both wanted to argue about it more, but at this very moment M'gann and Conner returned.

* * *

**Alaska  
October 6, 19:23**

A group of government agents set up a perimeter around some random lake. They were slowly pumping out the water to safely move the rock. Nobody noticed a woman dressed in dark red clothes sitting on one of the trees. Lady Shiva pressed a button on her binoculars and sent the feed back to the Light.

"I tracked the supposed kryptonite meteorite, but it is not what we think. While there are some traces of said material in the close proximity, the object is unlike anything I've ever seen before." She zoomed at the beast to allow members of the Light get a better look. "This... Monster appears to still be alive and unharmed by the entrance into the atmosphere nor by the crash. Move to intercept?"

" _Wait. Let the government do the hard work."_ In her ear sounded the voice of Vandal Savage. " _It's not like we are in any hurry so why be rush?"_

 _"_ As you wish." She sat still, awaiting the further development. When League of Shadows has been crushed she was one of the last free members. With Sportsmaster and Sensei taken out, it was up to Deathstroke and her to help Ra's Al Ghoul rebuild what was destroyed by this demigod. While Slade was now the newest enforcer for the light, she was trusted with training the other assassins. It didn't mean she couldn't do a field job once in a while. While Deathstroke was busy with tracking this traitor Cheshire, Vandal Savage asked her to investigate the crash of some meteor. Normally, the light wouldn't bother with something so trivial, but they were being stretched thin.

* * *

**Undisclosed Location**   
**October 6, 19:25**

Once Lady Shiva finished her report, Vandal Savage turned to rest of the members. "What do you think?"

"I've never seen such thing..." Luthor took a close look at the zoomed image. "It is some kind of alien, but I have no idea..."

Brain created a three dimensional image of the scan Lady Shiva sent. "I analyzed it's visible physical build and I can tell few things about this species." He said with clear french accent. "This species is definitely predatory. His strong muscle and sharp claws suggest it is practically made to kill. The spikes and bone-like plating might indicate that he is not the strongest on the planet he comes from, but he adapted. This planet either has a surface made of grey rock or this creature doesn't bother with camouflage. The first one would be of course better for us." Queen Bee sent him questioning glare. Brain didn't bother to explain such thing. It was below his intellect so Lex had to do it for him.

"Milady. If a creature developed camouflage it means there are other, more dangerous predators hunts them. But if alien evolved beyond the camouflage, replacing it with let's say hardened skin and bone like protrusions, it would mean that this is the apex predator where he comes from."

"And if we take in account that he survive entering the atmosphere and the impact, we can safely assume the second option." Ra's voiced his opinion.

"So we take control over him. If our tech works on him, we might have just gotten a new powerful weapon." Queen Bee smiled maliciously.

" **What with my Body? I am slowly loosing my grip on this world. It will take me years to return here. Years you might not have with this punk running around. You've seen what Poseidon's brat did to the shadows. He will take you all down if I do not stop this menace."** Ares was fuming with anger. While he was forced to act from the shadows, barely anchored to this world Perseus enjoyed himself and triumphed over god's allies.

"If you ask me it would not have happened if we just let him be." Luthor voiced his opinion.

"And then what? He would at some point run into our plans. Elimination was the best course of action" Ra's Al ghoul countered.

"Only when done properly." Queen Bee chimed in, shutting the Demon's Head down.

"Enough. What is done is done. We have more pressing matters than shifting blames from one another." Vandal calmed everyone down.

"But it is so much fuuun..." Klarion moaned. "I mean look how much chaos this creates." He was smiling until his cat meowed. "Yeah Yeah. I remember. They are our Allies. No need to remind me about it every five minutes Teekl."

"Luthor. How long will it take you and Klarion to finish this little project of yours?" Manta asked.

"We already moved the prototype from Cadmus to more secure lab and started the final preparation. I am sure it will _match_ your needs, oh great god of war." the last line caused burnt red flames to fire from the helmet.

" **Do not mock me mortal. I have more power than you could ever imagine!"**

Luthor wanted to say something, but Queen Bee stopped him. "Then I suggest Klarion and Lex get to work. I also have my own matters to attend. If it is all, then we should get going. The light finished their meeting and members that weren't present physically disconnected and returned to their own matters at hand.

"Soon my friend. You will get your revenge and I will rid the world of the plague known as Justice League. Then, you will have a chance to permanently anchor yourself to this world."

" **Yes. I will be safe while my brethren at Olympus die slow and painful death."** A creeping laugh could be heard from inside the helmet.

* * *

**Teton County**   
**October 10, 04:23**

In some underground bunker Professor T.O. Morrow watched his assistant check on two red android while he worked on something himself. He was a Caucasian male with green eyes, black hair and a pencil mustache.

"When the prodigal son returned, his father saw him and had compassion and run and embraced him. For this, his son was lost and had been found. You _are_ Prodigal son Tornado and I rejoice at your return. And thank you for making our little family reunion possible." He leaned back and placed away his tool. "Now, you must have many questions. None? Oh! I have forgotten. The voice box is off line. But your eyes and ears still function." He walked closer to the table. Red tornado looked him in the eyes. "As does the prodigious mind I built for you all those years ago." Professor leaned to be closer to his 'son' and continued. "And really, what else matters?"

He walked away, leaving Red Tornado in pieces on what could be called 'operation table'. Android's body was separated into different large parts. His chest was opened to reveal a glowing yellow core and his head, also separated from everything else, was detached and plugged into some system.


	16. Humanity and Magic

**Mount Justice  
October 10, 16:58**

Percy threw a punch at Kaldur, who dodged. The atlantean tried to go for counter attack, only for his fist to be dodged, caught and used as a leverage to do a judo flip on him. He landed on the ground with a thud and giant red 'defeat' appeared over his head. Percy didn't have time to cherish his victory because Garth and Tula came at him in tandem. Previously, he managed to send them away, but now they came back with new energy. He dodged punch sent by Tempest and at the same time blocked Aquagirl's hand. This left him open for Garth to try and kick him. If not for his superior reflexes he would probably already be on the ground or at least dazed, but luckily he was a demigod. For him everything around him was happening much slower, which gave him chance to push Tula away and grab the leg that was about to hit him and twist it. Garth made a 360 turn in the air and Percy hoped he would land face first, but no such luck. To his surprise atlantean managed to only fall on one knee. Demigod wanted to take advantage of this situation, but in the corner of his eye he saw a right hook sent by the atlantean girl. He blocked and did a counterstrike, but she dodged it. Aquagirl made a jab at his neck, but he matrixed his way away. He noticed Tempest going for a strike. In his current position he had hard time dodging the attack going to his midriff, so he did a backsault, kicking tula in her already hurting head and sending her flying. Before he saw a bright red defeat as the girl fell on her back, a Garth palmed him in the stomach and sent him tumbling into ground. Percy had no way of avoiding it. Normally this would not mean the end of any fight, but the rules Black Canary set were clear. Once you fall, you are out.

"Great fight everyone. I am impressed." She looked at Garth, Tula and Kaldur. "You actually managed to hold your own against Percy." She smiled. Everyone gathered gave a laugh. Since his return, Percy managed to best every single member of the team in hand-to-hand combat. Essence of Athena made a real number on him. During fight with Ares he 'learned' multiple martial arts. While his muscle memory for the moves was gone, probably due to godly essence leaving his body, the knowledge of techniques still remained, hard-coded into his brain. The more he practiced, the more attuned to it he became. Still, his ADHD did not let him just stand there in perfect form, repeating the same move for thousand times. He preferred action. That's why he was the most active sparring partner recently. Usually, Zoe was his combat partner because she thought that 'he is the only one that actually can pose any challenge'. Black Canary proven her wrong on that statement multiple times since, but she still refused to fight some of the 'younglings' and especially 'the males' as she kindly refereed to Robin, Superboy and especially Kid Flash. She had no problem with girls on the team and offered them to train them on multiple occasions. Only ones she had no problem with were atlanteans. Kaldur was always very respectful toward her and recognized her as a huntress of Artemis. Garth, while kinda rough on the edges, reminded her a bit of Percy with his hotheadedness and also how much he cared about Tula. He also made no attempts to flirt with her while staying more or less respectful. Tula was okay and quite easy-going. At the same time female sorceress had the fierce side to her. She reminded Zoe of Bianca. While the huntress long since came to terms with the death of daughter of Hades, seeing this same traits in another girl.

Zoe watched as Percy hit the floor and allowed smile to creep onto her face. She stood up and walked to the arena. She didn't manage to say anything before suddenly a red blur beaten her to Percy and started shaking his hand vigorously. She recognized it as Captain Marvel, one of the League members which was weird since Black Canary was supposed to be team's 'den mother' this week. They weren't expecting any other Leaguers to come.

"You are Perseus, right? Oh yes! You prefer Percy! Or Neptune! I am so honored to meet you. Well, technically I did before, but now I can talk to you in person! I am so thrilled. I saw how you've beaten Ares. This was sooo cool. You also took down the Injustice League with a wave of your hand! How cool is that?" Captain Marvel was speaking so fast that the others present in the room hardly managed to comprehend it. He kept going on about and praising Neptune's actions during the strange plants mess.

To Percy, this very much reminded him of Leo. Except Captain Marvel felt like he had also overdosed caffeine. "Yeah. I am pleased to meet you as well Sir." He finally managed to speak, interrupting the very eager and cheerful superhero. "Can you now please stop shaking my hand?" In all the mess, Captain didn't notice that he kept shaking Percy's hand.

"Oh yeah. Sorry. I got a little bit carried away..." He immediately backed away and looked guilty.

"No problem. I get it." Percy gave him a smile, which luckily cheered the muscular superhero. "So... May I know what brought you here? Do you have some mission for us?"

"Oh no! Missions are not my gig. I just had a free per... Some free time and decided to come visit. I quite like this place."

"Hi Cap. Do you have a mission for us?" Wally zoomed in, followed by Artemis, Dick, Conner and Megan. "Please tell me there is something to do. I am eager for some action." He zoomed to the kitchen and returned with jar of cookies, already half-empty. Robin could swear it was full only this morning. "Cookie?"

"Oh yeah!" Captain Marvel took five and started eating them all at once, throwing the crumbles all over the floor, which grossed all the girls and some boys out. Zoe definitely added this one to the 'worst males met' list. At the moment he was pretty close to Heracles. "An sably no. yssyos ae no ay gyg" He said... after he stuffed his mouth with another seven cookies. ( _And sadly no. Missions are not my gig_ )

"Comeon! Since Batman was removed from running this team, we don't get anything. It's like the league tries to keep us away from action." Robin moaned.

"I get you bro. I just woke up from longest nap yet and I don't even get any action." Wally joined his friend. "You could think the League does not trust us!" He sent Marvel and Canary a meaningful glare.

"If mission comes, you will know. For now better to prepare for what might come." Black Canary spoke diplomatically.

"You guys get that you are not contract-bound to do hero stuff only on this team, right?" Percy chimed in. "I mean I am with the team first, but I also need to do something in my free time."

"Besides watching old TV shows?" Zoe asked playfully.

"At least I don't try to fix history books." He responded with a grin.

"Not my fault they are all wrong and written by male mortals." She said with a pout.

"Okay. Easy there love birds." Artemis spoke. Before Zoe had time to choke her, she continued. "Thing here is, most of us aren't billionaires with fake school diploma. We still have school... or some of us need to work. Arrows aren't exactly cheap, you know?"

"Guess you may..." Percy was interrupted when Zeta Tube lightened up.

_Recognized: Zatara 1-1_

The magician then walked to console and pressed some buttons. The speed made it impossible to see what he did there, but soon enough robotic voice spoke again.

_Access granted. Recognized. Zatanna Zatara A0-3 Authorization: Zatara 1-1_

"Zatanna, this is the Team" He spoke while the mysterious person slowly materialized into the room.

The the tube appeared a young girl around robin's age. She wore a uniform consisting of white, button up shirt, dark blue skirt and even darker blue blouse with sleves ending around her elbows. She also had a dark blue bolo tie. When she stepped into the light, her medium length black hair and bright cyan colored eyes became easily visible. She had a rather slender build.

"Team. This is my daughter, Zatanna." The magician introduced the girl.

M'gann flew over to greet her. "Hi. I'm..." when she was about to give her name, Dick jumped in front and interrupted her.

"Robin. Khm. I mean I'm Robin. She's Megan," he waved at the Martian, "And that's Wally, Artemis, Conner, Kaldur, Garth, Tula, Zoe and Percy." He introduced the remaining members one by one in the order in which they stood there.

"Welcome to the Cave" Kaldur also greeted her, albeit in his usual monotones voice.

She was kinda abashed by all of this, but she managed to answer. "Uh... Thanks."

"So are you joining the team?" Robin asked hopefully.

Before Zatanna had a chance to answer, her father spoke "Let's not get ahead of ourselves. This is strictly a visit." He then turned to Canary. "Although I _am_ sorry we missed the training. It is something Zatanna could benefit."

M'gann created mind link between the team. " _Do the rest of you get the impression we are still on probation with Zatara?"_

Conner was first to answer and he sounded angry. _"Not just Zatara. I mean why is Marvel here. And why do they not send us on any mission since Injustice League. It was their idea for us to go."_

" _Well... I did kinda have to save you from execution."_ Percy added while grinning. He managed to overcome his fear of creating visions of sending the visions of Tartarus through the mind link. He no longer thought about this place as much, pushing it further and further into the very back of his head. There was no way he would completely forget it, but he would not let fear control his life.

" _It almost makes one nostalgic for when Red Tornado was tending as our supervisor._ " Kaldur spoke. Garth, Tula and Zoe all stayed silent, listening to the conversation. Huntress felt like she was not the one to speak in this discussion since she had no real idea what was it about and two atlanteans didn't want to get into the crossfire. They didn't really had that much trouble with the team. They came to learn more and they were learning things they never before imagined. Fight on dry land was completely different than underwater. They even got to practice water manipulation with son of Poseidon himself. Well, the first training session ended up as one and a half hour surfing show after Wally (who was having a beach day with the rest, taking advantage of sunny saturday) asked the demigod if he was any good. Turn out being son of Poseidon makes you good at many things, including surfing. Or maybe this one was from Apollo, whose blessing was literary 'get as much fun from your life as possible'. Percy already knew he was great singer and above-average instrument player. He was yet to try his strength at other arts.

" _Yeah. At least Red trusted us."_ Robin seconded.

 _"If you ignore the fact that we should not have trusted him!_ " Garth half-screamed in their minds, flaying his hands and gritting his teeth. He got kinda carried away. " _He almost got Tula... All of us killed."_

Being turned around, Tempest didn't notice Zatanna walking to them. "You guys having a psychic conversation?" This statement caused everyone in the room to look at her. "Because I can't decide if it is cool or... really rude."

After a moment of hesitation Conner turned at the league members in the room. "Alright fine! We were talking about red tornado. It's been weeks since his attack. And the league hasn't told us anything!"

"The league is serching for Red Tornado, as well as the other androids that invaded the cave _and_ their creator T. . It's been made our highest priority." Black Canary tried to get them to drop the subject.

"But you found none of the above" Robin said in accusing tone.

"Not yet. But Tornado is League. And the team is not to pursue this." She started to loose her patience with the kids when Zatara stepped in.

"Why don't you kids take Zatanna on... a... tour... around the... cave..." He started to look around. When the rest noticed that the girl in question was missing, they also looked around, only to find her playing with Wolf.

"Oh! You are giving a tour?" Captain Marvel seemed very happy.

"Actually, I had hoped you could take Wolf outside. He needs the excercise. We will join you in a few minutes." Conner spoke. He was quite calm, which rose Percy's suspicion, but he did not say anything.

The whole group was about to leave when Zatara spoke once more. "Yhm. Percy. Mind if you stay behind? I wanted to talk with you about something."

"Sure thing." The demigod turned and walked back to the leaguers, followed by Zoe.

"Can I stay too? I am not up for another 'this is the TV and this is the kitchen' walk. I thought exploring the temple of Apollo was boring." Zoe said half-smiling.

"I see no problem with that." Zatara spoke. He activated the main holo-computer and loaded image of Nyssa. Percy Remembered her from the memorable 'clubbing with cheshire'. "I assume you remember this woman?"

"Yeah. She tried to control me with some spell. I broke it and I think kinda reversed it." Percy shuddered at the memory. In truth, Hera gave him the power to dominate the minds of others. Her essence allowed him to impose his will on anyone, but it also made him vengeful. He straight up tortured this woman to get what he wanted. The worst part of it was that he enjoyed it back then. The essence made him into completely different person. When he used the Athena's essence, it was also unpleasant, but in completely different way. The wisdom goddess took away all of his emotions, made him into perfect tool of war, a strategic mastermind not influenced by anything. After the fight it sill felt... wrong, but it was not as distasteful as with the vengeance thing.

"Well... I have bad news. She performed the spell on the guards and escaped. I hoped to track her down, but I would need to know what to look for." Zatara spoke.

"I don't really know. She didn't give me much."

"What about her magic?" Zatara asked, but Percy gave the magician a confused look. "There are many different ways to perform a spell. While magic is all about willpower and imposing your idea onto the world, the exact 'how' is special for each person. It all depends on the sorcerer. Atlanteans have magical tattoos through which they channel the power into the water, which is the base of their spells. Those close to the lords of order or chaos can access so called higher magic, which allows them to basically impose their will on the world."

"I know some basic healing songs. It's pretty old magic by your standards." Zoe joined the discussion. She was never one for magic, preferring the bow, but when one spent three thousand years in the hunt, there was a chance to dabble into everything at least a bit. "I also know how to manipulate the mist, but there is almost none in this world."

"People with high aptitude for mystic arts can also cast spells. It's..." Zatara wanted to explain more, but he was cut off

"I saw you speak backward. Is that it?" Percy was a bit confused. Magic never seemed that simple with Hazel, but then again she was never speaking backward.

"Not exactly. Speaking is just a part of it. Giving command to reality. The hard part is imposing your will. To cast a spell I must visualize the effect, give an appropriate command and overpower reality. Even the words matter. The simplest is to speak backward in any language. Some prefer to just throw commands in straight Latin. This can make spell easier or harder. I prefer simpler and more reliable form. Latin is crude and much harder to perform, but also gives more... impressive results. In the end it's mostly about willpower. That's the magic."

Percy remembered how Nyssa spoke about his will. "And I guess that to control someone you must overpower their will?"

"Precisely" Zatara sounded happy that his whole speech was not in vain. He didn't like to repeat himself.

"Then I guess I know why Nyssa failed. Sea does not like to be contained. She tried to overpower my willpower and she got served." He was proud. Not everyone could say they won a willpower duel against a wizard trying to enslave your mind.

"Maybe. But we've got off the subject. Anything about her magic?"

"Well, she spoke backward, but it definitely was not English. I think it sounded kinda like Latin." He remembered the words. He could barely remember the spell at all, but one or two words made most sense in Latin or Spanish. The former made more sense if she wanted the best effect.

"Anything more?" Black Canary, who remained silent through the whole discussion suddenly joined. "Maybe something about her goal or plan?"

"Yeah. She said that I was supposed to be the perfect weapon against her father and I was even better than 'big blue'. I don't think I was to be her intended target at first. She practiced this spell for more than a year and I am here for not even half that time."

"And who is her father?"

"Ra's Al Ghoul. Talk about father of the year." He smiled.

"Isn't that the guy who stabbed you with poisoned knife?" Zoe asked. Percy silently nodded. She flared with anger and accidentally crushed the bottle of water she was holding. If not for Percy's quick reaction, they would all be soaking wet. Instead, the water remained in place, still looking like it was in the same container. "If I get my hands on this stupid male, he will beg me for death. I don't know how he managed to get a jump on all of us, but next time he will get what he deserves."

"Hey. Z. Calm down, okay? I am alive and his little assassin organization is in ruin. We have nothing to worry about."

"It doesn't change the fact that she might try again. Or go against some other leaguer. The big blue is clearly Superman. I will warn him." Black Canary was interrupted when suddenly screen flared, showing that Bio-ship left the hangar. She walked over and opened the channel with alien craft. "Team?"

" _We are kidnapping Zatanna..."_ Spoke M'ganns voice. "... _To show her happy harbor. We will bring her back safe."_ She added.

"Rodger that. Have fun." Black Canary cut the connection and turned to Zatara.

"I did not give my permission for that!" Zatarra was less than happy with the whole ordeal.

"They are good kids Giovanni. Trustworthy kids. You don't need to worry."

"Back to the matter at hand?" Percy spoke. He knew very well that the team didn't leave to show her the city, but rather sneaked out for a secret mission. He was kinda offended that they did not try and get him, but oh well! He will get back at them later. Maybe some prank. Stolls taught him many tricks and putting the pink hair dye inside the showers, then making it invisible, much like invisible ink, suddenly seemed like a great idea. After few minutes in the sun their hair would be pink for weeks.

"Fine. I think I know this type of magic. It's quite rare. Mostly it was used by Amazon sorceresses if memory serves me right." Giovanni pondered the question for a moment. "It is possible that Nyssa is not working alone. She might have a teacher. Mastering such potent spell all by yourself, assuming she did not have a prior magical training, would be almost impossible."

"So you are saying that this 'Nyssa' not only works with someone, but this someone is most likely Amazon?"

"Not necessarily..." Percy pulled his big mythology atlas and opened the index on page with names. "I recall that there were some witches and sorcerers in mythology. Not to mention that any child of Hecate is quite proficient in magic. Any Demigod in general has some magic affinity. I heard that back in the times when gods resided in London, there was a place in Scotland where they taught spellcasting." He was still looking through the index.

"But gods disappeared... from this world" Zoe added the last part after small break. Percy thought that she forgot about this being different world than their home. "How would any... mythological people survive?" She couldn't find a better term.

"The artifacts stayed, Amazons are still strong on their island and Atlantis thrive. And we are here. Nothing is impossible with magic."

"Anyone with direct connection to gods would need to be at least one and a half hundred years old..." Zatara sounded unsure

"Your point?" Zoe sounded half-amused, half-offended, "I was born before first humans were created. Achieving immortality was not that hard in the past. Steal the apple of immortality, have a god take liking into you or just live in correct area." She explained.

"I was wondering... Did you know about other worlds? Like, before you joined the hunt. Or maybe as part of the hunt?" Percy turned to her with curious expression.

"It's not like that. Only ones that would be allowed on this kind of secret would be the Olympians themselves and maybe the Titans. Me? I was just a nymph back then. An immortal one, but not a Titaness or Goddess."

"Figures as much. Anyway." Percy lost a bit of his happiness, but he continued speaking. "I found a list of known sorceress. We have: Calypso, Circe, Gale, which I believe would be Galanthis, Lamia, Pasiphae, Ptolemy and well... Zoe and the Hesperides." He finished reading the list.

"What? You are a sorceress?" Zatara seemed caught off-guard. "I thought you more of a warrior much like Diana."

"That's because I long ago learned how to mask my scent and aura. Really useful when hunting monsters. I do prefer fighting than casting spells, but I still remember some of my childhood days." She explained to him.

"Fascinating." The magician wanted to ask her about a dozen of questions about the magic and probably they would spend next few hours discussing spells or something. Percy had another idea. He was really curious what the team was up to right now.

"As much as I enjoy this conversation, Zoe and I have a thing we need to do. I fear we must cut this meeting short." He said, hoping she would pick up on his idea. She did not.

"We do?" She sent him a questioning glare.

"Yes. Don't you remember? The thing? We talked about it." He tried to figure out what would this 'thing' be, but his mind was blank. Luckily, she figured what was his endgame.

"Ah yes. The... thing. Yes. Forgive us, but we must be going." She tried to play to his game, but she did a poor job. They both were already walking toward the Zeta Tubes when Black Canary stopped them.

"And may we know what this 'thing' of yours is?" She gave the two an amused glare.

"Fine." Percy had to improvise really quickly. "I bought three boxes of old TV series and movies on VHS and Zoe promised to help me get through some of them today." This earned a giggle from Black Canary and an elbow from huntress.

"Okay then. Have fun on your date!" Dinah said as the two already disappeared in the yellow light. This comment would probably earn her a death stare from Zoe if she wasn't already in different part of the continent. She let out one more giggle before turning to Zatara. "Fifty bucks they will end up as a couple before the new Year?"

"Although usually I am against gambling... You are on." He smiled at her.

* * *

"Now you will explain what was that about?" Zoe gave him a menacing stare. "You gave them impression we are going on a 'date'. Spill."

"Fine. If I know the Team, they did not leave to show her around Happy Harbor. I think they went after Tornado and his Red siblings." He explained, remembering their psychic discussion earlier.

"So? It's their quest for vengeance. You do not interrupt one's quest for retribution lest you want to have their wrath directed at your person instead." She sounded less than eager to follow them.

"Well, they are still our team and we should at least offer them help. I do not intend to try and stop them. It would be quite hypocritical from me, wouldn't you agree?" He refereed to how he sneaked out on the quest to save Annabeth, even after he was told precisely not to do this.

"yes. I remember how stubborn you could be." She smiled at the memory. "But even if it pains to admit it, without you we would not be able to complete that quest. And you've proven that you are nothing like Heracles." This last sentence caused a silence to fall between them. It was the last thing she said to him before she passed to the other side.

After a moment of uncomfortableness Percy finally pulled out his phone and called Kaldur.

"What is it Percy?" Kaldur sounded a bit guilty.

"A small advice: if you try to sneak and not get caught, don't act this guilty over the phone. Me and Z. finished with Zatara and wanted to know if you would want us on the quest with y'all."

There was a muffled chatter on the other side of the line before Aqualad answered. "I am sorry my friend, but this is something we must do alone. It's a matter of personal business."

"No problem. Be safe and don't hesitate to ask for help if you need." In truth, Percy kinda wished they did want his help, but he could get where they were coming from. Red Tornado did betray them and almost suffocated them all. "Seriously. I am here for you."

"We do appreciate your offer Percy. Have a nice evening." He disconnected.

"Welp. That did not exactly go as planned." Percy gave Zoe a smile, but she frowned.

"Now what genius?"

"We can still watch the VHS I got..." He gave her a smile, but seeing her still frowning, he relented. "Or we can stalk them and go save the day. Eh... I was really curious about this 'Hello Megan!' show. I think I heard it before..." He didn't have time to think because Zoe was already pulling him toward the nearest Zeta Tube platform. "How exactly do we plan on finding them?"

"You get that you are talking to someone, whose code name is 'huntress'?" She deadpanned at him.

"Okay. I don't have any more questions miss."

"Did you honestly believe that Satyrs are the only one knowing the tracking song? Their is much stronger and can pierce the mist, but I believe finding some mortals can't be that hard." She said while pulling out of nowhere a set of Pan's Pipes.

* * *

It turned out to be very hard. Contrary to what Zoe said, the song completely refused to work. They ended up somewhere around north pole for some reason, then in Shanghai and then in Gotham. After Percy got the two evacuated from the city ASAP before Batman found them they switched tactic. Zoe of course blamed him for constantly making her misinterpret the signs. He decided not to dwell into her logic and instead focused on figuring another way to find them. They ended up in blue Valley, South Dakota. It was not really their destination as much as they jumped anywhere to avoid the Bat. This dude had serious problems and Percy did not want to give him any reason to hate him more.

"Great. Now what's the plan?" Zoe asked him

"If I remember correctly, I voted to drop this and watch some VHS. I really wanted to see this 'Hello Megan!'."

"Ugh. You Males and your procrastination." She did not sound angry with him, but said it in rather playful way. She was warming up to Percy and staying in his apartment. It's not like she had a better option and it was not half as bad as she expected for living with some male.

"I take offence in that." Percy stated. Just then, he felt earth slightly vibrate. He recognized that somewhere to the west there was some earthquake. His powers told him, that this was in Yellowstone. "Okay. That is really not good."

"Seriously? You are now going to throw me a temper tantrum because of that?" Zoe asked. This was not something Percy would do.

"Nah. Not that. There was a tectonic wave from Yellowstone. Someone is messing with the giant volcano under the National Park!"

"How bad can it be?" Zoe was never a major at geology. Her interest in Yellowstone was more focused on their population of Jackalopes.

"We are talking end of the world. The ashes from explosion from volcano this size will enter the atmosphere and block all sunlight. I think I could stop the explosion, but I would need to get there fast. Like three minutes top."

"Maybe they will manage?" Zoe sounded hopeful. She had an idea, but it was very touchy subject for her. Deep down, she knew the answer Percy will give.

"As much as I believe in them, this is not something they can deal with. If the volcano was already activated, there is no way of stopping it. We risk while Yellowstone exploding as one big volcano. This would bring down whole continent. They have no way of stopping it. I can absorb the gathering geo-force and safely disperse it before it actually causes the volcano to enter the third stage."

"Fine. I got an idea." She relented. This was something she really did not want to do. Zoe touched the moon symbol on her diadem and silver Maserati appeared in front of them.

"Is that..."

"Yeah. That is moon chariot. Now get in. We don't have time for explanations." She motioned him while sitting on the driver's seat.

Once they launched in the air, they got to the general area of Yellowstone in less than a minute. Percy did not want to guess how it had to look for mortal scientists when moon suddenly jerked on the sky when there was no mist to cover it. Even before they arrived, Percy could notice the... Army of Kid Flashes rushing at giant red robot that held unconscious M'gann?

"That is one strange of a fight...!" He shouted before jumping while Zoe was trying to park. He fell about ten feet before water from one of the nearest geyser suddenly flew to him, cooling on it's way. He slid down like on some water slide and did a roll before standing up next to Aqualad. "I am guessing big red and glowing is the villain?" When receiving a nod, he summoned his trident, but before he managed to do anything water got it's own life and attacked his enemy.

"Nice hit Neptune!" Robin cheered.

"I didn't do anything yet." Percy defended. Kaldur pointed to their left and he saw another red robot with a symbol of downward trident on it's chest and head. Their new ally used water to raise himself in the air and ordered more water to attack Red Volcano. The attack worked, but evil robot rose himself on the piece of rock. At this moment Red Tornado flew down and smashed the rock. Their enemy fell back into the magma, but he seemed resistant to it. just on cue, Red Inferno flew there and started to fire multiple fireballs. The two robots then pulled him under the magma, but even after Red tornado sealed the deal, Volcano exploded.

Seeing that their sacrifice was not working, Percy plunged his trident into the ground. From where the four reds were submerged rose a rock that carried all four up. The two oldest mechanical heroes were badly damaged and Tornado lacked his legs, but Volcano seemed like he was mostly undamaged. "Stupid Human. You save the one that wants your death?" The evil red mocked Neptune, but behind his mask the hero was grinning.

"No. I save the three heroes. You I will just dismember." He mocked.

"Ha! You are already too late." Red Volcano's eyes flashed and earth started to shake. This was supposed to cause final explosion. Villainous machine did not notice that Neptune's trident was still plunged in the ground. He wanted to see the faces of this useless meatbags when their world ended. To his surprise, there was no explosion. Whole super-volcano calmed down. He noticed trident sparking with teal lightnings. "what? Impossible. There is no turning back from third stage."

"Oh well... I guess you can add this to the long list of rules that I broke. Let's see if I can break something other than rules for a change!" With that, Percy sent a series of waves toward confused robot. While he might have had a better processor, he was still trying to comprehend how this human could stop the eruption. Before he realized and dodged, a stream of tremor waves hit his chest. During first two seconds he thought that his superior armor plating could withhold the attack, but then there was a loud CRACK! and his armor shattered. It was only few seconds before there was a large gaping hole in the middle of his chest area.

"Imp-Imp-Impossi...ble..." was all Red Volcano managed to say before he shut down and fell into lake of Magma. Percy dispersed the remaining geo-force by sending it all high in the air before dousing the remaining hot lava with cold water and making it safe for the team to walk closer to the pillar which held remaining three robots.

"Tornado!" M'gann screamed as she saw him all burned. His eyes were no longer glowing and he seemed shut down.

"He... Can't... Speak..." Red Inferno managed to say before her systems once again started to reboot, trying to assess the damage and rerous the important processes to undamaged areas.

"Let's get the three of them to the lab." Garth said while trying to pick Red Tornado. Conner reluctantly picked Red Torpedo and Red Inferno and they carried the three to the entrance to the hidden base.

* * *

Once they set Tornado on the table, Wally got to work on restoring their former friend's voice. When they finally fixed it, his face closed with mechanical ZIID! His eyes lightened up and he was back online.

"There. That should do it."

"Yes. I can speak again." Tornado announced.

"You were willing to sacrifice yourself to save the planet." Kaldur announced.

"The planet would have survived. It is humanity that was saved." Red answered. "'Though not by me. My sister and brother were true heroes this day."

Percy was about to protest about how he was the one that stopped supervolcano, but he decided that it doesn't matter who gets credit. In the end the people were safe and that's what mattered most.

"My point is this: you were never the mole. Never the traitor" Kaldur clarified.

"No. I left to protect you from further attacks. To find my creator, Morrow. I only regret that my siblings had to sacrifice their lives to save humanity."

"About that..." Percy had a loopside grin on his face. He stepped to the side to reveal two other androids. They were both badly damaged, but not beyond repair.

"I do not understand. I calculated that before the three of us defeated my brother, the magma would melt their cores and main personality cortices."

"I think you underestimated our friend here." Wally said while leaning on Percy's side. "He saved the three of you, stopped the explosion and changed Red Volcano into Mr. Red hole-in-the-chest."

"I am impressed. Thank you for saving my family. Now I will be going. Me and Z. have a moon to put back in place and some TV series to watch." On the last note he sent M'gann a grin. She did not understand what he was talking about, but chose not to dwell. "Also, I am not the one that is going to explain to our supervisor why you disobeyed orders. Or better yet: to Zatara in how much danger you placed his daughter."

The realization and fear dawned on their faces while Percy and Zoe climbed out of the lab giggling.

* * *

**Undisclosed location**   
**October 14, 16:16**

Vandal stood next to a pedestal with a horned helmet on it. They awaited their partners to arrive. Vandal was in particularily good mood. It was one of their first operations that was not interrupted by this meddling kids nor by infamous Perseus.

 **"How am I to be sure this body will be able to actually work for me well enough. With each passing day, this punk gets more and more powerful. The longer he attunes himself to the oceans, the stronger he will get. He needs to be stopped now or our great plan might fall to ruins.** " Ares spoke from inside the helmet. Vandal could swear he heard a small tingle of fear inside the god's of war voice.

"Do not dismay my old friend. Luthor and Klarion promised that the new body will _match_ your needs. They should be arriving soon."

" **It better. My previous host tried to resist me. He fought back, stopping me from accessing my power. He was also flail and useless. Not even his mind was of any use. I need a body that won't go against me. Something that will increase my might and not hinder it."**

"And you will have all that." Came Luthor's voice. He and Klarion appeared in the vortex of red and black, together with some stasis pod with something inside. "Gentelmen, I present you project 'Match'. We suited him for your need Oh great Ares!" Luthor smiled at the last remark. Klarion was not so subtle and let out a chuckle.

"Yes. I am certain it will _match_ your needs." He gave another chuckle.

" **So all this time you were making puns at me?"** Ares roared in anger. " **You pathetic..."** He didn't have a chance to finish because Vandal intervened.

"Now now. Let's calm ourselves down. You should thank them old friend. It was surely not an easy task to prepare a body for you."

" **Fine. You two have my gratitude. Now put my helmet on his head and let me finally be back to this world."**

"As you wish." Luthor opened the pod. Inside was a clone of superboy, wearing white body suit with red 'S' on the chest. As soon as the air was let inside, his eyes snapped open. He tried to wriggle and break the bonds, but it lighten up with red runes that sent jolts of pain through entire body of Match. Vandal picked the helmet and walked toward the boy. As he approached, the clone started to wriggle more. His animalistic mind was sensing the dark power and it unnerved him. When the helmet was placed on his head, the body immediately calmed down. The black and burnt-red flames traveled from head down and transformed the clothes into crude armor. Two golden swords appeared on his back with golden chains hanging loosely and attaching them to the belt.

" **Finally. Soon, I will deal with them. But first, I believe it's time for my sons to taste freedom once more."** This caused Klarion to give another chuckle.

"And for the wannabe heroes to finally feel the fear of the light! Kukukukukuku"


	17. Yet another war?

**Mount Justice**   
**October 16, 16:21**

The team watched in horror as Aliens killed their mentors, families, the people they trusted most. Each and every one was dealing with this differently, much like when something happened to Wally.

M'gann was hugging Conner tightly, crying into his shoulder. She just lost uncle J'ohn, the closest family member that remained by her side. She adored him and traveled to earth after him. She really wanted to be just like him. Now, just like that, he was gone... This was a shock. She always believed him to be almost immortal. Even back on mars, he was one of the greatest warriors and strongest telepaths. He was also one of the wisest. And now he was gone. She hugged Conner tighter, wanting him to just miraculously take away the pain. But even superboy had no such power. The best he could do was to be there for her. She looked at his face for a brief moment to see him looking at some empty point in the wall. He was still hugging her back, but she didn't need to use her powers to know that his thoughts drifted to entirely different place.

Conner tried to analyze the situation. He was made to replace Superman if the 'big blue' died. Ever since he joined the team, he believed that this was almost impossible. He was Superman for God's sake. He was indestructible. Or so they thought. The strangest thing was that he didn't really feel anything. He didn't cry after him, but he also was not happy. The realization of his death was completely indifferent to him. This detachment angered him. Not the death, but the fact that he didn't feel anything about it. This was like he was some heartless machine. Like a weapon he was programmed to be. He wanted to be sad. To mourn. To at least be angry and curse the fate for being so cruel, but death of Superman, of the whole league, did not affect him. He hugged M'gann closer. He understood that she needed some anchor, someone to remind her that she is not alone. And he was ready to be that person. For her. His precious martian. His M'gann M'orzz, the best girlfriend he could wish for.

Garth, Tula and Kaldur were by the side, mourning their king and mentor. Tempest and Aquagirl hugged each other while Kaldur just stood there in silence. He knew that he should have remained strong for the team, but he just couldn't. He almost broke down, but he chose to not do it now, in front of the team. The time for mourning would come, but now they needed to work. He tried to push the feeling back, but the harder he tried to suppress them, the harder it hit him. He was aqualad without aquaman. He was a sidekick without a hero. A single tear went down his cheek. Then it was followed by another. And another. And another. Orin, his king became more to him than just a mentor. He was his partner, his friend, someone he trusted with his life. They shared a bond. And now this bond was broken. The two other atlanteans dealt with this better. They lost their king, but they never had such a close relationship with him or the other members of the League. They made some connection, but they did not know them as well.

Robin was frantically analyzing the footage from thousand different angles. He did not have time for emotions. He had to work. Bruce would expect him to work first and mourn only after the work was done. While looking how beams hit the heroes one after another, he couldn't help but cringe. So many great people died in just a second. Then came a video of Batman's ship being destroyed by one of this beams. Being himself, Bruce had a backup plan ready. Sadly in this case it didn't work. ' _why him? Why does my family always end up dead. Whoever I attach to, dies...'_ He looked back at the team. They became his family. He would protect them. Robin could not afford to loose his family for the third time. Not again. He wanted to scream, to cry, to fight, to hit something. But for this there would be time later. Right now there was work to do.

Wally didn't hide his tears. He didn't even notice that subconsciously he hugged Artemis. She didn't mind. His mind played over and over the scene of his uncle Barry and aunt Iris dying. He wanted to scream, but at the same time he couldn't utter a single whisper. His throat kept dry and his mind was slowly clouding. He had no idea what happened with his parents, but seeing the city in ruin... he preferred not to keep his hopes too high. He snuggled into Artemis who caressed his hair, whispering snoothing words to him. Since the time he came out of hospital he started to get closer and closer to her. The memory of the pact he made and knew she made too was still real, but he was willing to accept whatever came at them. As long as the two were together, they would overcome it. He clang to this thought. Paradoxically, he was afraid to actually ask her out. He, who not so long ago flirted with every girl he met was now afraid to ask one girl that he truly liked to go on a date. This was hilarious and pathetic at the same time.

Artemis was focused on helping Wally deal with all of this. She, much like Garth and Tula, did not really have anyone that she was close to in the league. Her family was living... different life. Her mother back in gotham knew how to take care of herself and she preferred not to know what her father and sister were up to during such a dreadful times. Instead, she chose to comfort the boy for who she was willing to give up her freedom. She didn't regret it. Since he woke up, Wally changed. He still was himself, but now he limited the flirting. He stayed by her side and actually listen from time to time. She was even willing to admit that his jokes were not that bad once you got over the initial cheesiness. Instinctively, she touched the necklace. This was yet another secret she kept from all of them. If even one of them escaped, she would be in bad spot.

Zoe stood on the side. She was not even from this world. She had her own fair share of mourning already right now, looking at the couples in the room she couldn't help but wonder. While up in the skies she could see her friends die, she had to mourn the passing of many of them. She was always alone, with no one to share her grief with. Now, looking how they comforted one another she felt... jealous! They had this other people that they shared their troubles now. They also shared happiness. For a really long time she believed that she did not need it. That the other huntress were all that she needed. But in truth, she couldn't share everything with them. She was a lieutenant and had to remain strong. In time, she learned to suppress all emotions. Then came Percy. She had no idea how or why, but he changed her life by 180 degree. He proved most of her perception of things wrong. Now he was there, standing in the middle with angered expression. She was feeling the tremors. As weak as they were, she knew that he was barely holding himself together. Outside, the ocean was probably in the middle of a storm. For a moment, she wondered is she should walk there and comfort him, but she couldn't decide. He was her friend, but she was not exactly that good with this. Some small part of her wanted to hug him. Just hug him and feel his warm body. But the majority of her mind squashed this thought. She would not fall for any male. Not even Perseus. _But... maybe..._

Percy was standing there in the middle, doing his best not to sink them into the ocean or bring the cave down. Sure, he didn't like most of the leaguers, but some of them were actually nice. And there was Diana. The daughter of Zeus was like an older sister to him. He felt a pain of loss which he was more familiar with than he would wish. He looked up to the map and saw multiple red dots all over the world. The live feeds from different cities were popping and disappearing. He clutched his fists and felt tides outside rising. Memories of Second Titan War and Second Gigantomachy surfaced. He did not try to resist them. Instead, he embraced them. The feeling of being overwhelmed and how he conquered all odds and not only survived, but won. He did not forget all the death that happened back in that days, he never would, but right now he had more pressing matters. Something inside of him broke and a strong earthquake washed over the cave. This caused everyone in the room to stop what they were doing and look at him.

"Enough!" He spoke with authority. There was this weird feeling in his voice. He lost all cheer and now he seemed almost like a stranger. "I know you want to grief and mourn, but we don't have time for this. Most of us lost someone just now, but we can't let this stop us from doing what's right or the aliens already won. I will not speak for you, but I do not plan on standing still while my home is torn apart by aliens. So suck it up. By now most likely everyone on earth lost someone close. Let's not besmirch the memory and legacy of our close ones by standing back while the world needs us. We are the Justice League now and it's time to fight back." While the speech moved them all, the Team was still unconvinced. It was especially the ones that lost their direct mentor and family member that were uncertain. And as always it was Wally who was the most outspoken.

"If I remember correctly, it was Kaldur who was our leader." While he reigned his tears and hid behind the mask of anger, Kid Flash was still shaken by the events that happened not even an hour ago. "You are not even from this world. What do you know about leading eh? Especially in times of war? Some of us just lost our real families not another of..." He was interrupted by a low growl that came from Percy.

"What I know about leading? Well for starters I fought in wars since I was twelve. I led wars since I was fourteen. I've seen countless of my friends die in battle or from wounds after it." Here he sent a quick glare toward Zoe and she noticed pain and guilt in his eyes. "I battled Gods and Monsters... Titans, Giants, Giant robots! I led a small army to face an impossible odds and yet managed to emerge victorious. People died because of my choice. I let them die..." His voice broke for just a moment before returning back to the authority he held before. "You are asking me what I know about leading? I know all the pain it brings. I never really wanted to lead, but someone had to and I would be damned before I would let a friend suffer all this pain if I could help it."

 _"There. There is he. Here is Perseus as I know him. The noble leader that would still do anything for those he care about. This is the Perseus that earned my trust, friendship and who I like... wait what?"_ Zoe caught herself with thoughts improper for a huntress lieutenant of Artemis, but strangely she was actually getting okay with the thought... and she was dead afraid of it.

"Now I get the pain of loss, but everyone in line. While you mourn, innocents die. What would your close one think if they knew their sacrifice was in vain?" This words finally got deep into their skulls. The whole team gathered up and they proceeded with forming a plan.

* * *

**Arctic Circle  
** **October 17, 01:01**

The Bio-ship landed in stealth mode, raising small cloud of snow. Luckily, the large snow drift hid this occurrence from alien scout ship. The team, all in winter outfit, move out as planned. Miss Martian disabled the ship propulsion and communication system and Artemis sealed the invaders inside. This allowed three atlanteans to bind the ship using water and lock it in place. Scanning the thing, Robin found the crucial spot that had to be cut in order to detach cannon safely. He ordered Miss Martian and Superboy to proceed. Slowly, the rings on the apendage to which connected the weapon to ship began to break and crumble under the combined strength of telekinesis and kryptonian muscle work. One by one, the cables let go and slowly they tore the whole thing away, but as Superboy finally pulled it off, a smaller blast formed up behind his back. Seeing this, Aqualad wanted to act but Wolf was closer. The animal acted on instinct to protect his best friend and pushed Superboy out. While the kryptonian survived, the enhanced canine was caught in the attack and vaporised in an instant. The team, but especially M'gann and Conner, were all a bit dazed, but Percy who just now returned with Zoe from checking the perimeter for additional scouting ships urged them to continue. He was cold and detached. Almost not Percy-like. It was as if he turned into someone completely different.

"Let's get it done and move out. They ought to know about the attack by now."

"To attach the cannon I will need to decloak." M'gann said shyly. She was still shaken by all the death and to be honest the new Percy kinda intimidated her. Most of his kindness was gone and it made the aura of power he always had around himself all the more scary.

"Do it." Was his only response.

The camouflage disappeared and Bio-ship started to slowly form a connection with the cannon. The process was on both physical and mental level. As per Neptune's prediction, seven more scouting ships arrived and started to fire at them. Most quickly ducked between ice formations, except for Huntress and Artemis who stood there shooting the ships one by one with exploding arrows. The ships passed them unable to aim at them without exposing themselves to the barrage. The two archers took out all but one of the attackers, but the last one passed over them and made a sharp turn. The pilot expertly dodged the incoming arrows and managed to fire one time before Artemis arrow turned the ship into burning husk.

The beam was flying and to most people it felt like seconds, but three heroes saw it all in slow motion. Wally wanted to run and save Artemis, but he slipped. He watched in horror how his body fall to the back and he knew there was nothing he could do to save her now. He imagined there was no one else that could save her. Frame by frame he watched as the beam made it's way to her. In the corner of his eye he noticed one more thing. The barrier of ice slowly formed in front of Zoe. To his surprise Percy had his hand reaching toward that place. For a moment he hoped that the barrier would cover them both as they stood quite close, but it did not. Maybe if Artemis was a bit faster and noticed the forming wall, then she would be able to duck, but in reality it was happening in a matter of single second. Zoe herself tried to pull her inside, but she hesitated, unsure for a brief moment whether the beam was aimed at her or the other Archer. She still tried, but the beam was already too close.

The beam hit blonde heroine and she flickered and disappeared. To most of the rest it was just like that. M'gann was in too much shock to actually notice it. But for Percy, it was horror. His Life-sense went haywire. He felt each of her cell being torn to sherds by the beam. She was still there as a whole, but torn apart on the molecular level. Wally's face was a mixture of horror and pure rage. He got up and tackled Percy.

"You could have saved her! You killed her!" He screamed while trying to choke the demigod, but Neptune's armor made it impossible. The neck was reinforced, probably to stop any blood sucking creatures. It also served him well when trying to avoid being strangled. The ring on Wally's finger was glowing with burnt red light, but nobody could notice that. He felt immense rage overcome him. There was this hole in his heart that was created by her departure and now the ring filled it with anger.

The rest of the team was still shaken, but they noticed the exchange. Finally, Percy punched Wally in the gut and sent him flying away. the mask opened and he took down the googles. They noticed some tears going down his face. "You think I wanted this? I wanted her die? I made a choice. Protect one or the other. I made a wrong choice and I will have to live with it." They noticed a grim shadow in his voice. "But for now we must move. Reinforcements are bound to be coming this way. Is the ship ready?" Emotions disappeared from his voice as he spoke. He returned to the cold war leader persona. M'gann was still shaken and didn't register that the question was directed at her. Conner hugged her, also shaken by this event. Deaths of the Justice league members were on thing, but this was personal. And Wolf was now gone too. "We must move now." Percy urged her and she finally caught onto his train of thoughts.

"Yeah... Everything is ready... I think..." She was still barely holding, but being so close to Conner helped her get a grounding.

"Then move out."

"Where now?" Asked Kaldur.

"I will tell you my plan inside." Was the only response they received.

* * *

**Somewhere over the Atlantic  
October 17, 00:16**

"You want to do what?!" Wally screamed at Percy.

"Split up. It's the most rational move. We need allies. I would call the Amazons, but Queen Hippolyta closed the borders of Themyscira. For all intended purpose the island doesn't exist. No one can enter or leave the island. We need an army to fight the invaders and Atlantis may as well be the only nation that can actually go on par with them." Percy reasoned. His voice didn't waver even for a moment. He became this cold, calculative, emotionless leader of small resistance. He had no idea what really was going on. He couldn't recognize himself. Deep down he was screaming. He wanted to help his friends, but for some reason his personality changed. Only once before he was like this: in Tartarus. The memories were constantly flooding him. How he used monsters and giants and titans like a puppets to ensure survival of him and Annabeth. the memory of how he choked Alkhys with her own poison was one of the most horrific memories from that time. It wasn't like the others where he had to fight for survival. Back then, in that small moment he became the monster. He caused misery to feel miserable and he was ready to push it further. Back then only thing that stopped him was Annabeth. Right now he knew that he was doing the same. He used everything to achieve his goal. He became a dark, twisted reflection of himself. And there was no one to pull him back this time. And this scared him to the bones.

"But why send all three of our atlanteans and not just one. Or use communication?" Robin tried to get a grip on the strategy.

"All the satelites are cut off the powers which means no long range communication. And when... if Atlantis mobilize their armies and agree to send us the reinforcements they will still need us to guide them. Like it or not we are the Justice League now. They just lost their king. They will need a symbol of hope. Three of the most prominent students will do nicely as a symbol."

"Wait." Zoe chimed in. "You say reinforcements. For what?"

"After every war there are marauders, the army in disarray tends to get more violent. After we defeat their main force we will need help to clean the remaining forces."

"You talk like defeating the aliens will be easy. We would need a whole army. If our mentors failed, what chance do we have?" Wally was burning with anger. He didn't like Percy at all right now. While the original was nice and all this one was irritating. He was like Batman.

"We will. A small hit squad that will take out their main command. Like during second giant war." Nobody got the reference except for Zoe, but they didn't dare to ask. "Once we take down their leaders the war will end." Percy opened the map and started to analyze the situation with the invasion. "The mother ship landed in Smallville so that's where we must hit."

They spent next half an hour forming the plan. Half-way through the planning they dropped Atlanteans as close to underwater kingdom as possible, but they couldn't do much more. Percy sat in his chair trying to find some holes in the defense. He was feeling tired. Suddenly there was a loud scream in his head. His head started to ring a bit. Suddenly, the image in front of his eyes started to flicker. It was as if he started to blink really fast, except instead of darkness he saw what looked like a dungeon cell. The walls were made of stones and there was large bronze bars in front of him with crude locking mechanism. Suddenly, something... a head appeared in front of him. It was one of the scariest things ever and it caused him to jump in his chair. If he was later to describe it, he would be unable to do so. It just was and then passed.

"Everything okay Perce?" Zoe, who was sitting next to him asked. She was starting to get worried about her friend. "You've been acting strange lately. What's going on?"

"Nothing. It's just that I am tired. I need some rest." He wanted to leave, but she stopped him.

"No. I know when you are tired and this isn't it. So either you talk here and now or I punch you." She had to think fast to figure out a threat. Most of her usual ones wouldn't work so she resolved to something simpler. To her amusement he actually appeared worried.

"Fine. But not here." He stood up and walked to the back of the ship. She followed him and made sure to close the doors.

"Now spill."

"Okay. No need to get jumpy Z. It's just that... Since the invasion started it's been like the previous wars all over again. A group of heroes trying to save whole world from threat bigger than themselves." He started to open, but something stopped him. He felt as if there was something influencing him.

Zoe put a hand on his shoulder. The weight calmed him and allowed him to break through the mental barrier. It was as if her very presence had a good influence on him. "I know how you feel..."

"No you don't. You were a huntress. An immortal maiden." She was about to punch him, but he continued. "Between one war and another you had breaks. You could rest and had time to deal with all of this. Me? Since I was twelve I was fighting one war after another. The Fates must've really hated me because I had more experience with monsters in this six years than Heracles, Achilles and Theseus combined. Name whatever monster you remember and I faced it. Heck, I even fought Egyptian monsters and their gods. I came here to have some rest. Fighting criminals is one thing, but this is another full scale war in which I lead..."

"Tell me why you do it. Tell me why you constantly throw yourself at harms way? Why don't you just walk away? There are others ready to do it. I am sure Kaldur or Robin would plan something and win. You could go into the deepest part of the ocean and live on only Nectar and ambrosia and be safe. So why are you here?" She tried pushing him so he would get to the realization himself. And it worked.

"Because I can't let other suffer. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I allowed others to suffer while I could do something about it. I would gladly give my life for others. That's why the war scares me. Because there is no way to save everyone and Artemis is already dead. I could have saved her... I could have tried and..." His voice started to break. "Because of my choice she is dead."

"It's not your fault..." Zoe wanted to say more. Tell him how she dealt with the pain after one or more hunters died. But her body decided not to follow the orders. Instead she felt herself hugging him tightly. She had to watch out or she would crush him with her strength, but at the same time she wanted to be as close to him as possible. This male was something completely different than any other she met before. Perseus was... someone she could love. _Wait what?! No. That can not be happening. I would never... No! No!_ But at the same time she was getting comfortable with this. It was scarring the hell out of her. She was going against all she believed. Even by associating with male she was pushing the boundaries. This felt so wrong, but at the same time it felt like the only right thing. The only constant was that now it was terrifying.

* * *

The team finally arrived at Smallville. Robin was now armed with at least three belts full of explosives. Kid Flash carried another two.

"Let's go through the plan one last time." Percy said and they nodded. "Superboy. You create a distraction. Go about full frontal assault but don't even think about doing some heroic sacrifice thing. Get them out of the box and retreat. Miss M. will pick you up in camouflaged Bio-ship and you will meet us at the extraction point. Me, Kid Flash, Huntress and Robin get inside. Wally and Dick will set up the explosives at their power core and move toward the exit site. the hardest job was left for me and Zoe. We will sneak to their command center and take out all the leaders."

"Wait. Take out as in kill?" Robin was surprised that this part evaded his attention.

"Yes. Kill. Listen. I know your mentors taught you that killing is wrong and all that, but we are in the middle of a war. They won't hesitate to kill you and you can't either. It's kill or be killed. I would ask if anyone want to back away now, but then we could all go home now and just wait for them to come and kill us all."

"How are you so sure they are killing us all?" Wally questioned their self-appointed leader. "I analyzed the beam and it give Zeta radiation as well as some tachion reading. It's almost exactly like our Zeta tubes system." He saw Percy's expression darken.

"You saw Artemis die. I not only saw it, but also felt it. Her body was torn apart molecule by molecule, but her soul, spirit, essence or whatever you call it was still there. She was not sent away but rather torn apart. It was more cruel way to kill someone than I imagined possible." They all winced at the description. "So yeah, not a teleportation. I know you want to cling to this little spark of hope, but it was better if you let go and don't expect the impossible. I felt Artemis pass so the best you can do is honor her memory and make sure others don't have to suffer." This put Wally back into his place. He was still angry, but he had all the alien invaders to vent on.

Superboy was first to move out. In just two leaps he landed on the wall. Anger fueled his strength when he tore out the large cannon from the wall. Almost immediately aliens deployed response force. Dozens upon dozens of fighters flew out and tried to take Conner, but he kept firing. The disorder and amount of ships now flying in the air allowed four-person squad to sneak in undetected. The battle outside was not going well. Conner was getting overwhelmed. The whole area started to turn red as rage overwhelmed him. He kept firing and then he tossed the cannon at one of the passing ships. He leaped high in the air and grabbed another of this ships. He then spinned in the air and threw it at a squadron approaching him. He was slowly falling, about to land on another ship when suddenly he just like that disappeared. The explosions were enough of a distraction for M'gann to fly between them and quickly catch him inside. But this was not over yet. In dread she found out they kept shooting at her. They were under attack. One after another the beams almost hit them. She decloaked and strated to fire back, but it was already to late. She overextended and now both her and Conner would die. All because of her stupidity. In last desperate attempt she aimed the ship at the hangar bays. She could at least detonate rest of their ships. They were flying down. She grabbed the still dazed Conner and pulled him into a deep kiss. She was ready to go out in flames. Instead, an overwhelming pain went through her body. Suddenly, there was nothing more. One of the beams finally connected and evaporated Miss Martian, Superboy and the Bio-Ship from the face of earth.

* * *

Percy felt the souls of his friends pass from this world. He stopped for just a moment and looked behind him. The others also noticed something. Robin tried to get a grip on M'gann, but with no avail. The realization dawned on all of them. She and Conner were gone.

"We can't stop now. There is still the mission." To their surprise it was Robin who said that. The boy wonder then motioned them to move forward. Percy once again felt an immense headache. The images in front of his eyes started to flicker. The dungeon was there. He noticed someone who looked a bit like a scarecrow from Wizard of Oz, but all twisted and wrong. It was just a second before it all returned to normal. Percy shook his head and started to walk forward. His mask had an enhanced reality function and there was a glowing sea-green line in front of him, guiding him toward their goal.

The four heroes walked together for some time until there was a forking. Robin displayed the map and red dot appeared. "Okay. We are here. The main generator is down this way." He pointed right. "While the elevator that will take you to command center is that way. Be careful for patrols. Let's go. It's time to show this alien scum that Earth will not be theirs' as long as we stand!"

Neptune and Huntress silently nodded and run as stealthily as possible toward the elevator. After one sharp turn they ended up face to face with large group of giant walkers with cannons on their heads. A wicked smile crept at both of their faces. Percy and Zoe both charged, smashing through mechs at incredible speed. The orange beams were flying all over, but they were agile enough to dodge before anything hit them. At some point Neptune sent a wave of tremor energy through air, crushing few dozen of the robots. Probably every alien on the ship tried to get to them, but at that point both would gladly welcome some anger relief. Zoe was firing faster than machine gun. Each of the arrows either exploded, taking around three alien machines, or pierced straight through their cockpit, thus killing the pilot and leaving mech to fall out of control. The two of them moved slowly through waves of enemies. While it could be worrying that they will at some point get overwhelmed, Percy actually counted on it. It would mean that they got all the attention and Alpha Squad (as they brightly called Robin and Kid Flash collectively) would be free to finish their part of the mission and whole ship would be gone.

After they moved into another corner the corridor became too narrow to dodge effectively while walking side by side Huntress stepped back and allowed Neptune to lead, providing rear guard and taking out all the aliens chasing them. He on the other hand formed large bubble of water in front and made ice shield which constantly barraged all aliens with icicles coming from random points. This was brutally efficient until they got to large pile of aliens blocking the way. It was impossible to move the bodies in short amount of time and in the back their enemies kept coming.

"What now Z.?" Neptune sceamed while he joined her in battle firing more icicles.

"I don't know. We are kinda getting overrun by the enemies. Also, we are running out of time. Alpha squad will soon detonate the ship core no matter if we are on it."

 _This seems like a lot of running._ Percy wanted to give a snarky remark, but only thing that came out of his mouth was "Let's hope that at least one of them has the guts to do it."

As if on cue, the whole ship was shaken by explosion and it took only a second for a wave of unbearable heat to reach them. The walls crumbled and were consumed by flames or torn apart by sheer force generated by the destruction of reactor core. Both Neptune and huntress were quickly engulfed by it. When Percy opened his eyes, he was laying on his back. There was this ringing sound in his ears that made it hard to focus. His sight was distorted and he could barely make out anything around him. There was a thick cloud of smoke around them. It got into his lungs and scratched his windpipe making it hard to breath. There was also burning pain all around his body. He could feel that his armor was damaged in multiple places. The mask he used to wear was now probably in pieces and his belt lacked few satchels. He pulled several squares of Ambrosia and ate them. He did not worry about burning up. Either he built up a tolerance or with his change he could now consume more of it without problems. The healing took it's effect and wounds started to close. Once the ringing ended, he could finally stand. To his left Zoe was slowly getting back in shape. Her wounds closed by themselves without the need of ambrosia.

What really got his attention was his life-sense. Two souls nearby just passed to the underworld. His head snapped in general direction and what he saw froze the blood in his veins. There were two bodies burned to charcoal. The only sign by which he could actually make out their identities was a pair of red googles on the face of one. They were half-melted, but it was obvious they belonged to Wally. Another two of his friends died because of his plan. It was like with Beckendorf all over again. _At least they may now rest in peace. We won._

He summoned his trident and miniscule hurricane dispersed the smoke. What came into sight caused him to boil in anger. There came another ship, almost exact copy of the previous one, only this one was larger. It landed next to the crater after previous one, raising dust from the ground. Percy let out an unearthly roar. His mind was clouded with anger and his sight turned red. All that sacrifice. All that planning. All that fighting... All for nothing. In his peripheral vision he noticed Zoe running toward him, but at that point he didn't care one bit. He wanted to destroy all the aliens, no matter what it would cost him. He spun the trident over his head and plunged it in the ground with all the strength he could muster. The crack appeared and started traveling toward the ship. With every feet it traveled, it widened. Before it reached it's target, it was already wide enough to eat it all. When the earth under the ship finally cracked, the whole alien creation fell deep inside the earth down to the core.

The strain caused Percy to stumble on his feet. To achieve this, he tapped into all the power reserves he had. The pull he used to feel in his gut was overwhelming and he was about to puke. The crack began to close, but it was slow process. Zoe was getting to him and he turned to her. Percy intended to walk toward her, but his leg slipped on the ground and before he noticed it, he was falling into the dark hole of his own creation, the one which was supposed to lead to certain death. And he had no way of escaping. The gravity started to pull him down and he was falling. And falling. And falling. And falling. And he fell down the dark chasm. Only this time he was falling alone.

* * *

Once again the image in front of him flickered, only this time he was no longer in solitary cell. There were now three... no, four people in the room. The scarecrow, two men dressed in bulky armors that was glowing red and a woman. He recognized Zoe almost instantly. He wanted to do something, but darkness engulfed him once more. Suddenly, below him appeared something red. He saw the all too familiar sights of Tartarus.

"NOOOOOOOOOOO!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some characters were intentionally OOC. Sorry not sorry.


	18. Dread and Fear

**Smallville  
** **October 17, 5:16**

Zoe slowly opened her eyes. The ringing in her ears passed and world around her stopped spinning enough for her to stand up. To her right, she noticed Percy also standing up. She could only hope that Alpha squad was okay. But Percy's reaction suggested otherwise. She started to run toward him, but a wave of pure, unbridled energy enveloped her. Air all around her was suddenly filled with sea scent. The earth split and consumed the other alien ship. The tremor knocked her down. With utter fear she watched as Percy, barely able to move after the strain, tries to walk toward her only to stumble and fall into the crack. Almost immediately, it closed behind him, leaving her alone in the empty field devastated by invasion. They won. But now, she was all alone again. The only person in this whole world who could even partially understand her and who she dared to call a friend was gone. The sea scent in the air kept reminding her of him. Slowly, the aura of power began to fade. A single tear went down her face, followed by another. Suddenly, the reality started to shimmer before her eyes. It was as if she was constantly blinking, except instead of darkness she saw a dungeon cell. It was made of rocks and she could see the rusted bars in front. She could barely make out anything, but she managed to see the someone. He was really tall, about 6'8". She couldn't make out his face, but dark hair could reach down to his shoulders. His black full plate armor was decorated with thin lines reasembling withered tree branches and from between separate plates there was malicious red glow. In his hand was long black sword decorated with greek leters forming the word Dread.

" **Another one is waking. You promised us that with our help the serum would be permanent."** That voice... She already heard it before. But it couldn't be. It was two centuries ago when she was still lieutenant of Artemis. Back in her world. But at the same time she would never mistake it again. When he and his brother came to 'play' with the hunters, it was only thanks to Phoebe that they fended them off. Having a daughter of the god of Fear does have it's benefits when fighting said god. Slowly, as she realized who this was, the reality began to stop shimmering and she got grounding on the truth. The empty field disappeared and she was now fully in the cell. She was in civilan clothes, but her twin bracelets firmly on her forearms.

"Deimos and Phobos!" She screamed. Her mind was still clouded and recent memories of all of her friends dying still fresh. She crossed her bracelets and immediately her armor appeared, transforming her. The bow materialized in her hand and she drew an arrow with it's head glowing red.

" **Look brother. Little huntress is awake."** Another voice, this one belonging to Phobos, came from the corridor to the right. She was still in the cell, but she could tell that there were other rooms down the line. The god's of fear voice was a bit higher and he seemed like he mocked her. At the same time, he was sending involuntary chills down her spine.

Deimos laughed at her. " **Indeed brother. I am sure we can take a break from our work and have some fun. On look. She already changed for us. Well... Let's see what the little huntress can do, shall we?"** His voice was lower and more coarse. He was also mocking, but for some reason while Phobos was more crazy, Deimos sounded like some nobleman from late XVIII century. He had this accent that she could place to somewhere around Northern Balkans. He sounded like his son, the legendary Count Dracula, at least before this abomination met his end at the tip of her mistress arrow, but not before he managed to forge his legend. To this day it wakes dread in the hearts of some people. Talk about making your father proud.

"I give you one chance to return my teammates to me, else you shall face my wrath." To settle her point she fired the arrow in front of the bars and the explosion practically disintegrated them.

" **Ah** **! Stupid Bitch."** It was Deimos who screamed. The flames of explosion reached him and put his hair on fire. " **I will cut you to pieces and use your blood to bring my son back! The very one your mistress killed!"** The anger came from him in waves and almost pushed her into the wall, but she managed to withstand the attack. He pointed his sword at her. **"Come and face your death like a man!"** He gave an earthly chuckle at this, but his demeanor was still grim and she could tell he took pleasure in taunting him.

 _Okay. This is not perfect. They have numbers advantage and appear to drain strength from the others. PERCY!_ The realization dawned upon her. If they managed to drain the son of Poseidon of his power, they would be unbeatable for any mortal. As if he read her mind, Phobos answered.

" **Yes. Yes."** And another wave of chuckle. " **We have the power of your precious sea-spawn at our grasp. He is now living through his greatest personal fear."** She wanted to attack, but decided to let him gloat. Maybe they would reveal some weakness of their plan, whatever it was. " **The beauty of our friendly doctor's invention is that it did most of the work for us. We just linked your minds and you created the most dreadful scenario yourselves. Of course we manipulated it a little so you all could also experience your own personal horror, but that was mostly on me."** He finally came into the view. Phobos wore armor almost identical to his brother, except his glowed dark orange. His face was also lit by same orange light. the burnt-blond hair reached over his shoulder, but she couldn't tell the exact length as he had it all pulled behind his back. In his hands were two broad-axes with image of skull on them. " **I only regret that we did not have more time. I wanted to see how far your feelings would go before out of fear you would kill the sea-spawn. Or would you?"** A sudden wave of emotions crushed her. Before her eyes she saw herself kissing Perseus. Their bodies worked in perfect harmony. She closed her eyes, but vision only intensified. Sudden fear engulfed her.

"NO! Thou lascivious tickle-brained baggage! I... I..." The feeling of dread and visions took away her power to think clearly. She tried to fight it, but she was barely holding them at bay.

" **I admire your spirit, child, but you cannot hope to fight the fear itself. We are stronger than any mortal could ever be. The spirit of the son of Poseidon is already our and so is yours."** Deimos laughed at her attempt.

It was then that she understood. They fed off not only Percy, but her as well. Just because she woke up didn't mean she stopped their influence. The fear was still there and they used her like a well from which they drank to gain more power. But they didn't really understand. They thought of her as a mere mortal, a huntress who lost her mistress and broke her oath.

Instead of fighting the fear, she decided to embrace the visions. She accepted what they showed her and let go of her fear. She was standing straight and silver light started to surround her. Her eyes glowed brightly. " _ **Thou art mistaken. I am nay m're m'rtal.**_ ** _"_** She instinctively reverted to the old English. The light started to spread from her and travel to all the other cells, waking the rest of the team. _ **" I shall bringeth thee down and maketh thee regreteth yond thee did dare to playeth with mine own feelings. I shall showeth thee true feareth. F'r i am the mistress of the hunteth, the queen of the moon, the mistress of f'rests. I am zoe nightshade, the heiress of artemis. And thee did dare to attacketh me and mine own cater-cousins" [1]**_

Her body emitted a large, silver explosion, shattering the walls surrounding them and turning the dungeon into one big hall. In the far end she noticed the lab table with multiple vials and items, most of them being not that modern. The others were there, unharmed by the silver light. The bow in her hand also glowed and another arrow appeared. This one was formed of pure silver light and had jagged tip. The small symbol of the moon on her gloves glowed and once she released the arrow at Deimos it passed through him. Another such arrow traveled through the heart of Phobos all before either of them managed to actually comprehend what was happening. Dark tendrils materialized, connecting them to all the other young heroes in the room. Slowly, the silver light traveled through them and they glimmered and disappeared, severing their connection with twin gods. The only tendril that resisted was Percy's. Two gods roared in pain as parts of their strength left them one by one.

" **You stupid bitch. You think that just because that cursed mistress of yours made you her heir you can oppose us?"** Deimos roared and launched himself at her. Almost instantly another arrow hit him square in the chest and silver explosion pushed him back. Zoe was standing unfazed by the god of dread.

" _ **Thou art still mistaken yet again. Mine own mistress is nay m're and anon i holdeth the pow'r the lady bestow'd upon me. I am the new goddess of the moon and hunteth in this w'rld"**_ **_[2]_** To prove her point, she created a symbol of crescent moon over her head. Her bow glowed silver and arrow formed. This time, both gods were ready for battle. Neither noticed a small figure of scarecrow sneaking at the edge of battlefield to the stairs. He closely held to a vial of gold-and-red liquid.

* * *

Percy's eyes opened suddenly. He grasped for air, but his lungs started to burn with sulfur and his body felt as if he was laying on crushed glass. Most of his suit was torn apart. The poisonous air burned his wound and made it hard to even stand up. When he tried, his legs gave up under him and he fell down yet again, creating more wounds. The pain slowly overcame him and clouded his thoughts. With last ditch effort, he pulled out the vial of nectar and drunk it in one gulp. Then another four. Some of his strength returned, but the very aura of Tartarus dampened his natural regeneration.

A vicious roar came to his ears. Immediately, his head snapped into that direction. There, he saw thousands upon thousands of monsters, all walking toward him. In the front, there was a demigod, Ethan Nakamura. But at the same time, he was deformed and twisted. His arms were now longer and each ended with clawed hand. His legs were now also elongated and shaped like with wolf. Probably the most prominent feature was his head. While he still had his eyepatch and general shape of Ethan, many remaining features were very wolf-like. His mouth was full of sharp claws and his nose was that of a wolf. His chest was naked if one did not count the fur that covered him. In his hands there were two swords. The weapons were made of black metal with slight dark-purple glow.

" **Perseus!"** The twisted demigod roared. " **You promised us that we will not be shunned and forgotten! And yet, instead of enforcing this you chose to run away to different world."**

"No... That's not true. I made a difference! The gods promised..." Percy found his voice breaking. The memory of his visit to Calypso's island and how he made the gods promise to let her out. But did they? He didn't bother to check on her. Same with Bob. Did the minor gods receive thrones on Olympus? He made a wish and thought it would be all.

" **The gods promised nothing. Their word is useless!"** His voice changed. It was now more rough and coarse. His words came more like a bark than actual sentence. " **After you defeated Gaia they gave you an option to become a god. Then you could make a difference. Instead, you chose to run away. You selfishly avoided responsibility and jumped at the chance of supposed happiness. Tell me Perseus Jackson. Did the happiness was worth leaving the whole world to suffer under Zeus rule? Multiple worlds? You are in one of the few in which he can't mess things up. The rest suffer while you have fun. It's time to bring some balance!"** With that Ethan and the army charged at Percy. He tried to summon his trident, but it didn't come to him. Panicking, he tried harder but it still didn't work. The first monsters, a pack of werewolves led by Ethan, began to close at him. In last desperate attempt he formed a trident from water in his gauntlets and froze it. It would not last too long, but it bought him time. One of the monsters was faster and leaped at Percy, but he impaled him with his trident. The beast turned into golden dust that showered the son of Poseidon. More werewolves came and he was forced to focus. His mind accelerated and everything slowed down, but to lesser extend than usually. Either the monsters were faster or his abilities were being dampened here. A small hurricane formed around him. The army of monsters came down at him, but he cut through them like a hot knife through butter. While he was winning, the monsters kept coming. After he killed several dracane he picked a sword similar to what Annabeth used to carry after they escaped Tartarus. That memory caused him almost physical pain, but he managed to suppress it and continue his dance of death.

A small cut there, another bruse there. For every hit he took Percy killed two hundred monsters. But their legions seemed to be limitless. Some of them seemed to regenerate on the spot. Already he suffered several curses from Arai and some monster managed to give him a deep cut through his face, forcing one of his eyes to close. Step by step he was being pushed to his limit. there was no time to eat ambrosia or drink nectar. Already countless weapons shattered and he had to replace them. He tried to alter between different arms, sometimes using spears, other times battle hammers. Once he killed a telkhine he even got his hand on a trident, but while it was a very good quality he shattered it on Nemean lion. He had to choke him to kill the beast and this time he did not get another golden fur. But the greatest pain wasn't really physical, but mental. Many Demigods that followed Kronos were now here, turned into monstrous beasts. He had to kill them to survive. They all fell. Behind him there was an ocean of golden dust. Percy himself could accompany Rachel during one of her fundraising stunts as a golden statue (that is if not for his ADHD).

Finally, he noticed a clearing in the distance. On the field with almost infinite monsters seeing an empty space was a blessing. He doubled his efforts to get there. Whatever was there scared even the most resilent monsters. He was ready to face it if it meant he would get even few seconds of rest. As he closed by, it seemed that some of the smarter monsters almost let him pass. Some even had a wicked grin on their face. finally, he reached to the place.

The clearing was surrounded by monsters, but none dared to close on lone young woman with golden hair reaching up to her waist. She wore a classic Greek chiton in her hand she held a drakon-bone sword. Near her laid a crumpled Yankee hat. Her face was ridden with tears. Once Percy entered, his heart froze. He would recognize this princess curls anywhere. In front of him stood Annabeth.

* * *

Zoe fired another set of arrows which were all deflected by a bloody red sword. The dungeon they were in was already full of arrows and so were the armors of two gods. The new goddess proven to be a worthy opponent, but her enemies were much better than they used too. She suspected that somehow they are draining the skills from Percy. She had to push her limits to fight the two of them. It didn't help that her friends were now mostly awake and trying to help Percy. The entrance was sealed by the rocks she knocked with stray arrows so they couldn't escape. The hit and run tactic was not really working and she had to resolve to something new. Her bow morphed into two lean scimitars with curved handle, mostly straight blade that ended with curved tip. Both blades had slight bluish-silver glow to them. The gods laughed together until started to run around the walls, taking down all the remaining torches and bringing the room into darkness.

" **You pathetic girl. Do you honestly expect us to fall for the darkness? We do not need the light to fight you. You are still too afraid of us to actually do us any damage!"** Their demeanor changed once the light returned. Except they were no longer in the dungeon. Instead, the ground under them was a silver sand and on the sky among multiple stars floated earth. The sun was shining at them.

" _ **Mistaking feareth f'r tactic shall beest thy demise. I did avoid hurting mine own comrades, but anon th're is nay one to beest did hurt but the two of thee. And thou art on mine own home turf anon" [3]**_ Suddenly, a rain of silver arrows came at them and each exploded the moment it made contact with the ground. The silver sand rose behind Deimos and formed into her general body shape. She emerged from it and cut him in between the plating, only to sink back into the ground. Phobos tried to flash away, but when his light died he realized that he was still in the same spot. The lean figure of the new Goddess came at him out of nowhere and she made a deep gush on his shoulder, right when the breastplate meets with arm guard. He turned to follow her trail, but she was nowhere to be found. A voice came from seemingly all around them. " _ **Th're shall beest nay escapeth from mine own wrath. Thee madeth a misprision and anon thee shall suff'r f'r t" [4]**_ She continued to appear, strike and disappear. Before they had time to do anything, she was already gone. Two brothers met back to back, trying to form a defensive circle, but then she started to fire arrows at them from all over the place. The moon was completely her to control and she could do with them whatever she wanted.

Only thing that saved the two gods from dying was her single mistake. Feeling too bold, Zoe appeared right in front of Deimos, planning to plunge her sword into his gut. He saw her a second too soon and grabbed her by the neck, taking away her ability to breath or speak. She tried to escape, but the god of dread was too strong. " **Now let's see if the 'New Goddess' need functioning airwaves to breathe, shall we?"** The pressure on her windpipe increased and she could feel herself slipping away. In last ditch attempt she banished all three back to earth. Almost immediately they appeared in what used to be the dungeon. The torches immediately lit and heroes grasped seeing the Huntress hanging by her neck, trying desperately to breath. He punched her few times to get all the air from her lungs. Normally new gods could go a long time without air, but now she started to get desperate. The team wanted to rush and help her, but Phobos blocked their way.

 **"Now now... We wouldn't want to stop my brother from conducting his experiment, right? It's not every day that we get a chance to play with the New Gods and she is in brand new condition."** His voice sent chills down their spines. Especially to robin it sounded all too familiar. It was like a mixture of Joker and Scarecrow put under the helmet of Ares. It took all his willpower to actually stand and not run away.

"Who are you? Why are you doing this?" M'gann screamed. She was still shaken from whatever happened to them, but she was also worried for Zoe.

" **It's simple. We want power. We do not want to be shunned as third grade gods. And this"** He moved his hand to show the whole dungeon. " **This was supposed to be our way to power. We would be as strong as our father. Then, we would take our rightful place at the new Olympus, safe from the fate that awaits old Gods."**

"Kaldur? What is he talking about?" Wally asked unsure.

"I don't know KF. I know who he is. This are Deimos and Phobos, twin sons of Ares who drive his chariot to battle."

" **Very good Atlantean. But sadly this knowledge will not sufice you to survive."** His twin axes lit with orange flames and he attacked them.

* * *

"A-Ann... Annabeth? B-but... You are a goddess now... What are you doing here?" Percy couldn't gather his words.

" _What I am doing here?"_ Something was wrong. His voice sounded too high-pitched and deformed. It wasn't how he remembered it. " _Because of you Zeus cast me down here as a punishment. He blamed me for the fact that you rejected godhood. He forever lost his best weapon and I was punished. I lost everything all because you chose to run from the responsibilities!"_ Suddenly, She jumped at him with her sword, now burning with golden flames. Instinctively, he blocked and countered.

"Annabeth... I am sorry. I didn't know." She continued to attack him and he could barely find strength to fight back. The guilt was crushing him. His wise girl's face twisted into scary grimace and her once-blonde curls were now all sticking together and covered in blood.

" _Spare me this Perseus Jackson. You never know anything. You are just useless,"_ at that she suddenly swiped her legs under him, knocking him down and disarming him at the same time. " _stupid,"_ She then punched him in the face and twice in the gut. " _worthless and most pathetic boyfriend I could ever have. If it wasn't for you I would have a happy life at camp half-blood. You brought me only sadness and tears."_ She plunged her sword deep into his stomach, pinning him to the ground like a butterfly to the wall. He started to choke on his own blood.

"that's the rage... the anger... this isn't you speaking..." He could feel his consciousness slipping. That was his end. He killed several thousands of monsters, only to die to the person he loved. "Please know that I... I am sorry for leaving you... I couldn't... I..."

* * *

Zoe felt her consciousness escape her slowly. She had to do something. Her twin swords laid on the ground below her, but she had no way of reaching them. Her mind clouded, but in last ditch attempt she grabbed her diadem and plunged it into Deimos eyes. The ear-piercing scream that followed got attention of everyone in the room. He let her go to pull the diadem from his eye. Zoe immediately exploited this. Before her legs even touched the ground she grabbed her blades and plunged both between plates in the armor of the god of dread. He slowly turned to golden dust, cursing at her in Ancient Greek.

Phobos roared when he saw his brother fall in battle. For the first time, true fear entered his heart. Never before they fought for such a high stakes and never before they lost so much. Zoe rose from the ground spinning her blades menacingly. She turned to the god of fear. her eyes were glowing with silver light and her whole posture was just screaming bad-ass warrior. " ** _Surrend'r anon 'r thee shall shareth the fate of thy broth'r" [5]_** Her voice was loud and enhanced by the aura of power that surrounded her.

" **You stupid bitch. You ruined everything. And for that, I will ruin the only thing you hold dear."** With that, he extended his hand toward Percy and son of Poseidon was engulfed with orange flames. The dark, barely visible tether between him and Phobos was separated, but he didn't wake up. " **Now he will suffer for all eternity for what you did. You will know the pain you bes..."** He was interrupted when two blades were suddenly plunged in his stomach. The last thing he saw before turning into golden dust was Zoe's face, full of anger. It sent chill down his spine.

When Phobos disappeared, Zoe immediately dropped her swords and rushed to still unconscious Percy. The orange flames died, but they left a barely visible orange-tinted aura. She knelt by him and tried to wake him up. She pulled out some nectar from his belt and poured it down his throat. It had no real effect. While physically okay, Percy was trapped in the prison of his own mind.

"It's prudent." Her voice returned to normal and she now spoke in plain English. "Whatever curse Phobos put on him, I can't break it."

"I could... I could maybe enter his mind and break it from within..." M'gann offered. She was uncomfortable with the idea of going into Percy's mind, but that was maybe their last option.

"No. Don't you dare!" Zoe almost screamed at her. This caused Miss M. to recoil. "I am sorry. It's just that if it's what I think it is, he is now experiencing his worst nightmares. And you know what is his worst nightmare..." She didn't finish, but Kaldur did it for her.

"Tartarus... So no telepathy. That leaves Zatara as our only option of breaking the curse. We need to move..." He was interrupted when Percy started to voilently trash around. A large hole appeared on his stomach and blood slowly poured outside. "what's going on!?"

"It's worse than I thought. Whatever happens to Percy inside the dream will happen to his body here. Our only hope is for him to wake up on his own." Zoe almost broke down, but she managed to get a hold of herself. She leaned to his face and poured more nectar, trying to at least slow down his bleeding. She whispered to his ear. _"I believe you can do it Perce. Please don't leave me alone..."_

* * *

Percy was laying on the ground, bleeding heavily from his stomach. There was blood in his throat and he could feel some going into his lungs. Already he was hanging on the last strand of his consciousness. It was so tempting to just give up and be free, but he forced his hand. When he pulled out the blade more blood sprouted, but he poured water over his wounds. They closed, but he was still weak from the blood lose. He stood up, but his legs almost gave up and he would fall on his face if not for the enhanced reflexes all demigods had. Using drakon-bone sword as a cane he supported himself. Annabeth laughed and pulled her dagger. " _So you still want to fight? I must say I admire your stupidity. But there is no way you win with me. I am a goddess. You are just a mortal."_ She took a battle stance and held her knife backward.

"I will not fight you Annabeth. I understand while you are angry at me. I was angry too. But please promise me that once I die you will move on. It pains me to see you twisted with anger..." He tried to walk to her but he fell on his stomach. Pain like no before coursed through him.

" _Look around. We are in Tartarus. There is nothing here but despair and death. We are both lost cause. All. Because. Of YOU!"_ She lunged at him, but there was a flash of golden light and when Percy finally opened his eyes, he saw Annabeth's dagger being stopped by... Annabeth. She held the identical dagger, but that's where the similarities ended. She was wearing full Greek armor and her hair was perfect as always.

"You will leave this Seaweed brain alone you cursed beast. I command so in the name of Dionysus, the god of Madness." At her words the twisted Annabeth disappeared. She then walked to Percy and helped him sit down. The mosnters around them considered closing on them and taking advantage of the situation, but one look of the stormy grey eyes scared them away even farther than they stood before. "It's okay Percy. I banished her."

"Annabeth?"

"I am here. This was just a wraith. She exploited your emotions. I am sorry I cannot help more, but I am here as a favor from Mr. D. The pill of his essence will be gone... I am so sorry Percy. I can't stay long. My time is short and if Zeus finds out I am here I will be in much trouble." He wanted to interrupt her, but she kept going. "Please Percy, forgive me for what I did. I wasn't thinking clearly. Also, move on. Don't hold onto the memories of me. You have whole life in front of you and you can't waste it on a memory. I am the past and you should look at the future. Find new friends and hold to them. Don't play the lone wolf..." She started to fade away into golden light. "And don't be angry at Artemis for what she did." with that last sentence she was gone. Percy stood up with the last of his strength. His mind was clearing a bit, but he was still in Tartarus. He called his trident, but it still didn't respond. With resignation he picked a drakon-bone sword and taunted the monsters. "Come at me! Show me what you are made of! try and kill the son of Poseidon." The hurricane surrounded him once again and he went into battle.

* * *

Zoe was frantically trying to wake him up. Nectar, water, not even the slap on the face worked. It did leave a large red imprint of her hand though. She was barely keeping herself together. The longer he stayed that way the greater the chance of another injury. It was a miracle a wound this large closed, but it was still long way from being well. Hundreds of small cuts and bruises littered his body. She had to pour nectar on each and every one to close it. Death by a thousand cuts was not the most pleasant one. The problem was that she was curing the symptoms not the problem. He was still buried in his dream. She could hear him whisper taunts at the monsters. It pained her to see him that way.

"I called the league. They will be here as soon as possible." Kaldur returned to the room. Together with the others they managed to remove the rubble blocking the doors. It would go faster if Zoe helped, but she was too busy with helping Percy. "Should we move him outside?"

"No. I don't want to risk making things worse." She responded not even for a moment breaking the contact with him.

"I am no expert, but if the curse was created to put him through his worst nightmare, maybe the opposite could actually wake him up?" Tula suggested. They were all pretty shaken from their experience, but Tula, Garth and Kaldur did not reveal to the others what they saw. While the others left, they traveled to Atlantis only to find it in ruin. Tula and Garth's parents hid in the palace among other survivors. They joined them and tried to defend the palace from overwhelming forces, but ultimately they watched them die like everyone else that they knew.

"So what are you exactly suggesting?" Zoe beamed at hope.

"In the stories I read here on earth it was said that the kiss can break the curse." M'gann suggested. Zoe only frowned.

"That's just a fairy tale. It doesn't really work that way. Magic is much more complex than that." Garth explained to M'gann.

"Actually, this might work." Robin opened his gauntlet computer and started to run some tests. "In theory during kissing brain release endorphins at accelerated rate. Right now his body lacks crucial hormones to feel happiness. This might in turn lead to depression, apathy and... this." He waved over Percy.

"So someone just need to kiss him? That can't be that simple." Wally questioned the Boy Wonder.

"It isn't. I don't know the whole science behind it, but it must be someone with whom he actually shares the deep emotional connection else it won't work." At that everyone's gaze turned to Zoe. Her expression was actually full of fear. Sure, Percy was her friend, but that was it, right? Everything more was just some manipulation by Deimos and Phobos. _But the manipulation mus have some basis..._ The memory of her talk with Lady Artemis came back to her.

_"You like him, do you?" Artemis asked, earning a confused look from Zoe_

_"He is my friends if that is what you are asking. He is not like the other males. You said so yourself." Former lieutenant said._

_"Yes, yes he is. Before we get to other things I want you to know this: You died in battle, effectively leaving the hunt. The oath no longer binds you to me."_

_Zoe was confused. Her mistress started to speak in mysteries and she couldn't figure this out. "I don't understand milady."_

_"You will when the time is right. Now to the other matters..."_

_The oath no longer binds_ _you_... Was that the way her lady tried to tell her that she allowed him to date Perseus? And why she did not inherit the domain of Chastity? That would be ridiculous. The goddess of maidens playing matchmaker... She looked at Percy and she saw the grimace on his face. He was in great pain, but there was also this determination of his. This was the hero ready to sacrifice the world to save a friend, but also to sacrifice himself to save the world. All the happy memories of them spending time together flooded her mind. How they fell asleep together watching Disney and woke up hugging, how he catered her to health when he first woke up. He even took her to the mall so she could get some of her own stuff. He was there for her when she needed him. He didn't laugh or try to take advantage of her weakness, but helped her find the strength she needed. He was also willing to open himself for her. Then his mind traveled further back, to the memories of before her death. He was willing to sacrifice the glory and swallow his pride, taking the sky so that her mistress had time to try and safe her. He gave up the nemean lion skin, his rightful trophy to protect the innocent Ophitaurus. He didn't even want it in the first place, arguing that he didn't deserve it. Perseus sure was something special. Someone special. Someone she could actually picture having feelings for.

With that in mind, she leaned over and planted a kiss on his lips. At first it was normal peck on the lips, but it quickly turned into passionate full blown kiss. Slowly, Percy's eyes fluttered open. At first he was surprised to see Zoe kissing him, but he ignored the questions that started to pop up in his head and kissed her back.

* * *

Scarecrow was running through the labyrinth of corridors in the castle. He hoped to escape with the vial of the blood of supposed New Goddess. He collected samples from every participant of the experiment, but she's proven the most resistant. If he could crack her secret, his toxin could be unstoppable. Somewhere ahead of him he heard a quick steps. A group of people was running this way. He understood that they would get him and take away everything he achieved. He couldn't have that. Looking around, he couldn't find any exit. The destroyed portrait at the wall glared at him. Even when it was cut and discolored, it retained the sense. The person on the picture was very similar to his co-worker. His face was almost identical and he wore very similar armor, only it wasn't black but burnt red. He held the very same sword in his hand and in the other there was a helmet that resembled Dragon's Head. Hoping for the best he pulled the torch next to the painting. The steps were almost there and his time was running out. To his relief the secret entrance opened.

He jumped and closed the painting behind himself. Through the eyeholes he could actually watch as the whole Justice League run next to him. Doctor Crane held his breath, hoping that the leaguers wouldn't pick up on him. But luckily they had other business to attend to and even if they noticed him the let him be for now. Scarecrow turned around to see where he ended. There were stairs leading down. He noticed a lever on the wall. Deciding to take a risk he pulled the lever. One by one, the torches along the stairs lit. Now feeling encouraged, Crane walked down. He entered a square chamber with elevation in the middle. On said elevation there was a single, richly decorated coffin. It was sealed, but it wouldn't stop him.

"Fascinating!"

Still gripping the vial tightly, he used his clawed hand to remove the seals and move the lid. Once it fell on the ground dust rose in the air causing him to cough. Once he got a hold of himself he looked down. For the first time in decades Doctor Johnathan Crane, also known as Scarecrow, felt fear. Inside the coffin was a man from the picture. It was obvious that they were the same person, but at the same time completely different. His skin was pale as paper. His hands almost empty of any muscles. Fingers, long and thin, ended with sharp nails that were more like claws. His face was the most scary part. It retained the human look except for his mouth. Two fangs shoot out. It was irrational from Crane, who was supposedly unable to fear anything to dread from a corpses, but the aura surrounding this body evoked an attack of panic.

In this state of utter dread, Scarecrow accidentally let go of the vial, which shattered on the face of this man in the coffin. Some of it got inside his mouth. Whoever it was, he opened his eyes. They were bloody red and black with no trace of any white. He leaped at Crane and bit his neck. Slowly, he drained his blood but stopped before crane could die.

"Thank you, child of Fear. I needed it. The blood of my slayer brought me back. But I will need to regain my strength before I can go after her. To do that, I will need help. You will do nicely for now." He had a thick accent and he held himself like an aristocracy. "You will help me, right?"

Crane was trembling now. His suspicions were just proven correct. "Of course, Count Dracula... I will serve you..." He bowed. "Whatever you wish..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [1] You are mistaken. I am no mere mortal. I will bring you down and make you regret that you dared to play with my feelings. I will show you true fear. For I am The lady of the hunt, the queen of the moon, the mistress of forests. I am Zoe Nightshade, the heiress of Artemis. And you dared to attack me and my friends. (translated using English to Shakespeare translator found in google. Sorry for butchering the language.)
> 
> [2] You are still mistaken yet again. My lady is no more and now I hold the power she bestowed upon me. I am the new goddess of the moon and hunt in this world.
> 
> [3] Mistaking fear for tactic will be your demise. I avoided hurting my comrades, but now there is no one to be hurt but the two of you. And you are on my home turf now.
> 
> [4] There will be no escape from my wrath. You made a mistake and now you will suffer for it.
> 
> [5] Surrender now or you will share the fate of your brother


	19. New Moon, New Hunt, New Gods

**Romania  
** **October 17, 03:16**

Percy's mind went blank for about a second or so after he woke. The realization dawned on him like a charging Hannibal. Zoe Nightshade, _The_ huntress of Artemis, was kissing him. It wasn't even some chaste kiss on the lips, but rather something much more deep. Instead of thinking about it he let his instincts guide him and he kissed back. His mind was now completely awry and Percy couldn't formulate a single thought. No, that's not true. There were two things on his mind. Most of it was Zoe Nightshade, but (very) small, painfully rational part of his brain was screaming something like ' _Artemis will turn you into a jackalope, make you immortal and hunt you until Hades Come.'_ Percy, being Percy, completely disregarded the rational part and focused on the beautiful young woman in front of him.

Zoe was not faring much better. She acted practically on pure instinct. It was supposed to be small peck on the lips, but before she realized it they were entwined into a deep kiss. Her mind long since fried. This was completely new experience for her. Even when she was with Heracles this brief period of time it was not like that. The son of Zeus had this aura of lies and pride around himself, like everything was always about him and he deserved everything. With Percy, she felt wanted, needed and safe. When she first kissed him there was this small spark that ignited something long since buried deep inside her. It was almost magical. For this few moments, she let go of any conscious thoughts and swam with the current. The closest thing to an actual thought was ' _He smells like a sea breeze'._ It really scarred her, but also felt right. Like it was supposed to be. She just accepted reality and focused on Percy.

The two of them would probably stay that way for whoever knows how long since they both had quite impressive lungs, but the sound of (fake) coughing brought them back to earth.

"I don't want to interrupt the lovers, but I think maybe you would prefer a better scenery... and less witnesses?" It was the Flash. Both Zoe and Percy quickly separated and turned their own shades of red with Zoe being close to Speedy's old outfit and Percy mimicking Red Tornado's plating. This caused rest of the Team and other leaguers who just arrived to let out a chuckle. Well, Batman stayed dead serious, but it was balanced with Wally and Artemis both rolling on the floor laughing.

Zoe's eyes suddenly had this faint silver glimmer to them and her expression hardened. "Not. Another. Comment. From anyone. Or I will gut you with a spoon." The threat fell on the barren land and only caused more giggles, chuckles and general laughing. Seeing that Zoe is getting more embarrassed he acted. Of course with his graceful social tacitness he decided that the best way to ease her was to pull her into a hug. She didn't protest.

Finally, Wonder Woman managed to calm herself and the other leaguers. She decided that the couple had enough embarrassment for the night. "It will be best to move. I imagine the whole 'incognito' was already blown the moment whole league appeared in Dracula's Castle. Let's just hope there will be some rational explanation and people won't start gossiping about Vampire Count returning to..."

"It was Scarecrow." Percy interrupted his cousin. "I saw him during the... nightmare. I woke up just for a brief second two or three times. He was always there and quickly sent me back."

"He was not working alone." Kaldur added what Percy couldn't have known. "Scarecrow had some kind of help. They..."

"Deimos and Phobos. Twin sons of Ares." Zoe jumped in. "They wanted to use us as a batteries trapping us into endless nightmare and sapping our energy."

"And what happened to the gods?" Captain Atom asked. He sounded like a sergeant demanding a mission report. This was really their first time since Team talked face to face with new leader of the Justice League.

"Zoe killed them." Wally burbled before anyone else had chance to say something. "She was a total bad-ass. Like seriously, she wiped the floor with them for the most part. Even when one of them captured her, she just used it as an opportunity to get closer and pierce his stomach with the blades. Then, she made the other beg for his life before also killing him after he cursed Percy." Kid Flash quickly summarized the events not sparing the less pleasant details.

At his description several leaguers grasped, but Captain Atom raised his hand stopping them from commenting. "We will discuss this later. For now we should move. After your urgent cry for help we weren't exactly covert about getting here." They all slowly started to move from the dungeon. It didn't escape adult's attention that there was something more to the whole story. The way their proteges held and supported each other, how they were silent and withdrawn, even Wally didn't try and tease, flirt or joke with anyone. The most solemn-looking were Kaldur and Robin. Maybe because the two of them did not have anyone to comfort them or maybe there was more to it...

* * *

**Mount Justice  
October 23, 17:23**

_Recognized: Batman, 0-2_

A gloomy, hooded figure walked out of the Zeta tube. He looked around the team, only to see them still brooding and angst. After they got back to the cave almost a week ago, teenagers explained the whole 'collective nightmare'. Batman frowned. It was almost exactly like one of the training exercises he designed while he was still the leader of this team. It was too much of a coincidence to just shrug it off. Someone must have stolen the file and give it to Scarecrow of the Twins. The Doctor was nowhere to be seen or heard about since his stunt. No criminal in Gotham knew where to find him. He walked over to the computer to join Wonder Woman, Martian Manhunter and Captain Atom.

"I hoped they would all have gotten over that by now."

"Such trauma is not easy to get over. I seem to remember about a certain young boy who couldn't deal with his for almost quarter a decade." J'ohn responded to Batman's statement.

The Gotham Vigilante just sighted, deciding not to dwell on that. Instead, he smoothly changed subject. "Any leads on Scarecrow?"

"None." Captain Atom pulled a holo-file to be displayed. "I still don't get it. How did they manage to infiltrate the cave, subdue them all without rising any alarm and transport them to Romania outside the system."

"Flashing." Captain Atom jumped as suddenly he realized that someone was standing right behind him. "Deimos and Phobos are gods. They can appear wherever they want whenever they want. Or rather could. You know the gig." Outside of all the young heroes, the one who suffered most was Percy. His voice lacked this spark of joy that was always there. His sarcasm became dull and if he smiled at all, it always felt forced. Like all others, he was scheduled for therapy session with Black Canary.

"First of all I would appreciate if you didn't sneak up on me." Captain Atom was still surprised how stealthy Percy could be. After taking a closer look he noticed how all the shadows in the room looked like they tried to reach him. He looked like he was coated in some shadows even now. It was like the world wanted to make him look gloomy. Heck, he could compete with Batman.

"Sorry. Didn't realize I was doing it."

"It's fine. Secondly, you mean that gods could just appear in let's say some bank vault and take anything they wanted?"

"In my world? No. There were 'ancient laws' in place, which forbade interfering with mortal world. But in this world there is no Drama Queen and no Fates to enforce the rules. So pretty much yeah, gods can do what they want here. That is why Ares was such a threat. Nothing would be able to stop him."

"that is indeed concerning" Martian Manhunter was deep in thoughts.

"Thank you Percy for your input, but isn't now your turn with Dinah?" Diana asked kindly.

"..." He had to take a moment to gather words. "Zoe is still there. It's taking quite long."

Since the memorable event, and even more memorable kiss, neither Zoe nor Percy really talked. They did manage some small talks here and there, but the tension was so thick that sharpest knife would be too dull to cut through it clearly. He had a lot to process. As stupid as this was to him, he felt like he was cheating on Annabeth. She was supposed to be his princess, his warrior queen. But something went wrong along the way. Her pride got in a way of their dream. He wasn't at fault, but he still felt guilty now. In his dream she told him to move on. At first, he thought this was supposed to be just his imagination fighting off the effects of whatever they drugged him with, but when he woke up he checked and indeed Dionysus pill was gone. It was his Annabeth. She came to talk with him for just a moment. She herself told him to move on and don't live in the past, but it was still hard. Zoe didn't help with it either. She practically cut herself from him. There was this strange awkwardness between the pair. Percy tired to understand her, but it was not easiest. This kiss was against everything she stood for throughout history, but after all she was the one to initiate it and didn't break once he was awake. Zoe sent him conflicting signals. It was as if she regretted what happened, but at the same time didn't. He could catch her starring at him when she thought he was not looking, but her glare was not the butter eyes, but... Percy couldn't quite place it.

* * *

Zoe sat in the armchair all stiff and on the edge. Across her Dinah Lance, also known as Black Canary, sat calmly.

"So, are you ready to talk now?" The blonde asked.

"What is there to talk about?" Zoe immediately reacted defensively.

"For starters, what are you feeling right now?" Dinah tried to carefully approach the more delicate subjects.

Zoe sat there in silence a little longer, pondering what to do. It's been a week since the event and her relation with Percy suddenly became a lot more awkward. She couldn't bring herself to look him in the eyes, fearing what would she see. If they talked, she tried to mask any and all emotions, which made her sound cold. _This is stupid. I can't go crazy because of a mere boy. I am the huntress of Artemis. It is ridiculous._ At the same time, she couldn't even look at her reflection in the mirror. She betrayed everything she stood for. Being a lieutenant used to be her whole life. She built everything around it, including her very personality. Now she went against it. It was the only constant in her life ever since her banishment from the garden. And now she gave it all up for a boy once more.

"I... I don't know." She finally decided to try and speak with someone. It's not like there was anyone better than trained psychologist. "I have no idea how I am supposed to feel after all of this..."

"And why is that?"

"For starters, it's the first time in three thousand years that I am actually alone. I always had some of my sisters with me before... Even after my death I could watch them and serve as a guidance, even if only as a constellation." When she finished, Dinah silently nodded. Zoe had to give it to her, she didn't immediately started asking hundred questions about exact science behind it.

"If I may, what is the story behind your death?"

"By mortal standard it was four years ago. My mistress left to hunt one of the most dangerous monsters in the world and she got captured. I was tasked with leading the rescue mission. There was this prophecy... It was said that one would die at their parent's hand. And my father happened to be the one from the prophecy.

"Sorry that I interrupt, but I was never really that good at mythology, so if you could please explain who your father is?" Dinah scolded herself for her lack of knowledge.

"Atlas, the Titan of strength, forever forced to hold the sky." Even saying the name caused some pain. The memory of life running away from her returned, but she focused on the expression of woman sitting in front of her. Zoe was still stiff, but she slowly opened up. "That really isn't important. I died serving my lady. Look. I know that you think death would be traumatic, but for nymphs... It is a bit different with us nature spirits. While when mortals die they enter underworld, I would only be reborn as another plant, maybe even become a full-fledged nymph later on. I... I only regret I won't serve my lady anymore..."

Dinah was doing her best, but she had almost zero experience in such cases. "Why is this so important to you?"

"Artemis is... she was my best friend and only family I had. Now I am here, all alone."

"You might think you are alone, but remember that there are people who want to help you. You seem to have okay relationship with the team. I am also willing to talk if you need something. And there is Percy." Dinah regretted immediately the mention of the son of Poseidon. Zoe went into defensive.

"What with Percy?" Seeing that blonde woman didn't really mean to tease her, she relaxed just a little bit.

"Did the two of you actually talk after... what happened?"

"Why should we? It was nothing. I just had to wake him up somehow." She couldn't bring herself to face the truth.

"Are you sure? Because I've noticed that lately the two of you seem to avoid one another."

"The truth is I don't know how I feel. I spent three thousand years hating males, only for him to storm in and change everything I believed was true. Suddenly, he proved that I was wrong and not all males are bad. And then this whole mess with traveling to another world happened and we ended up living together and spending most of the days in the same space. Then I became a super-heroine and now we spend even more time together. And time after time he proves that he is more than meets the eye. And then to break the curse I had to kiss him. Of course I agreed. I owed him that much. He was the reason I was free from the stars and walking the earth again..." She paused for a moment and Dinah decided to ask something.

"But didn't you say you enjoyed being in the stars?"

"I did, but it was boring. When you spend almost your whole life traveling the world, just sitting and watching can get boring. I even bothered to actually learn modern English, although it can still get confusing from time to time."

"Okay... So you owed him. But was that the only reason? I can sense there is something more to it." Blonde heroine wanted Zoe to realize the truth herself, but she could point her in the right direction.

"At first, I just tried to justify the act itself, but the moment our lips met I felt a spark going between us. And then he woke up and reciprocated the kiss and I stopped thinking. I let my instincts get the better of me and I went against the very basis of my whole life." The huntress admitted. "It felt wrong, but at the same time I wanted it. But now I can't even bring myself to look him in the eyes. I am pathetic. I don't deserve my title..." She stopped herself. Luckily, the team was not awake enough to actually catch up on what she told Phobos and Deimos and the twins would not reveal it to anyone. Her mistress asked her to promise not to reveal it to anyone, especially Perseus, until the time was right. When asked, Artemis told her that she will know if it's okay to actually tell anyone.

"I can't tell you what to think about this situation. I probably would be just as confused if I were you. What I can tell you is that it would be best to face the situation head on before it gets out of control." Zoe nodded and without a goodbye left, too deep in her thoughts to notice the sight Black Canary gave her. She sneaked out of the cave without anyone really noticing. There was no general direction she wanted to go, just needing to be outside and alone. Crescent moon on her gloves lit and in beam of moonlight her moon chariot appeared in form of sleek, open roof Maserati. The paint was obviously dark silver. She had no idea why the moon chariot preferred this form, but she learned to enjoy it too.

* * *

**Metropolis  
** **October 23, 17:45**

There was a sound similar to single bell and a glowing yellow portal opened. The perfect circle released something similar to a car, carrying five teenagers. The really bulky one with mane of red hair and wearing jacket which looked like it was made of some animals fur laughed.

"Hero Danjar!"

"Zon! Nos kemnos! Danjar tharan, thanka, tabore..." Another teen echoed. He wore what looked like cowboy outfit, complete with poncho and a hat.

Their leader pulled out a strange looking box which gave sound similar to opening portal. "I masked out energy signature and scanned the planet for her. She is here. The location was uploaded to navigation system. Let's go." Their vehicle began flying toward nearby city. Very far away, there was a small glimmer of silver light as another car was traveling over the skies of Metropolis.

* * *

Artemis sat in the armchair, looking more bored than anything else.

"Look. I know it might be a shock, but I was actually 'dead' for the most part of it. The beam hit me and suddenly I wake up on the floor of a wrecked dungeon to witness Zoe battle two villains. No need for the shrink-wrap."

"You are too tough to need help..."

"Whatever. Maybe." Artemis got defensive. and closed a bit.

"Or maybe too tough to admit you need help. Artemis. It's not a sign of weakness to open up to your friends."

She gritted her teeth. "I know that."

"But you still keep secrets from them."

This caused Artemis to panic. All of her supposed calmness and 'whateverness' disappeared in an instant and she almost leaped out of the chair. "You won't tell them anything. You can't!"

"I won't." This caused Artemis to actually relax a bit. "But you should. You can start by admitting you are not really Green Arrow's niece."

She instinctively grabbed the necklace with three pronged star. "I think some secrets should remain just that, secret. Besides, can you imagine what Wally would do with that?"

"Interesting..." The subtle gesture didn't avert Black Canary's gaze, but she decided not to ask about her jewelry. Instead, she chose to dig on the 'Wally subject'. "So the person you are most worried about is Wally."

"Duh! I did..." She cut herself before she admitted that she traded her free will for his life. "watch his recovery. I was the only one who visited him. Do you honestly didn't care once he was moved to the Star Labs?" to avert the suspicion, she decided to shift the guilt.

"We both know that others visited as well. I think it's enough for today. Thank you."

* * *

Zoe was traveling over the eastern Seaboard. Her vehicle drove itself so she could freely stand up and not hold to the wheel. She used her bow to shot at every Target advertisement that was on the nearby road. Some companies remained the same in every reality. She put from three to seven arrows in each billboard just for a good measure. It's not like she could run out of ammunition nowadays. Suddenly, a large car flew right in front of her. She quickly pulled the manual break. The chariot came to halt mid-air. The people in the other vehicle did not look particularly friendly.

"You must come with us at once." Their leader, Vykin, demanded in stern voice. It was like he would not accept 'no' for an answer. "It's abo..." he didn't finish as a silver arrow flew right next to his helmet, leaving a tiny scratch and and embed itself in the hull of their car.

"I am in really bad mood for kidnapping so start running. I much prefer when my target moves." While her voice was completely calm, her face did not leave space for doubt. She was pissed and they just angered her even more. "If you think you stand a chance against me just because I am alone..." The arrow materialized as she pulled the string of her bow and this time it had a head glowing with red light. "Think again before I actually hurt you."

To her surprise, the big guy in front gave out a deep, hearty chuckle. "I like her already. She has a true spirit of a warrior."

The only girl in their group spoke next. She was dressed in pink skirt, pink top and short black cape with pink accents. "Forgive our leader. Vykin has good intentions, but he sometimes is a bit..."

"The word you are looking for would be stiff, uptight, overzealous, by-the-book." Serifan decided to use the new vocabulary he learned from his westerns.

Zoe was still frowning. "You have one minute, then I start shooting."

"We are forever people of the New Gods of New Genesis. The Highfather sent us to meet with the new New Goddess here on earth. We tracked your energy signature and came to greet you. It is almost unheard of for a new New God, or Goddess, to just appear like that." Dreamer explained.

"Time is ticking." Arrow was still notched, but Zoe let herself lower the weapon just so slightly. "And speak in a way that I can understand..."

"What my friend dreamer tried to say, is that we are just like you. Infused with the remaining power of the Old Gods." Moonrider explained. "The New Gods live on two planets: Apokalips and New Genesis. They used to be the graveyards of the Old Gods, where all the essence of fading deities went after they were no more. In time it formed first of the so called New Gods."

Zoe's mind was working overtime. When her mistress told her that she would become a New Goddess, she expected it meant that she would just inherit her position, but with less power. Becoming member of completely different species, an alien at that, was... surprising could not convey the feeling. Suddenly, another thought came to her mind.

"I am older than humanity and in my whole existence only a handful of gods faded. How can it be that there was enough power to actually form... you all. I assume there is more than the five or six of you?"

This time, Vykin came with an answer. "Well, Earth was not the only planet on which Old Gods were present. Almost each planet with sentient life on it had some of them. A handful was settled at Mars. We never really knew why the ones here lingered so long and never faded."

"Probably because they were anchored to more than one reality." Zoe mumbled under her breath, but it was loud enough for them to hear.

"What do you mean Warrior?" Bear asked in his jovial voice.

"Well, apparently there is more than one reality and while some Old Gods are limited to just one, others exist in several. Earth, which had more than one pantheon, just happened to be one of the constants in each of them."

"Fascinating. The question that bothered greatest minds on New Genesis answered just like that." Vykin was frantically scribing something on holo-notepad that extended from his glove. Suddenly, there was another ping-like sound. The device he held in his hand glowed momentarily. "It seems more of my questions will have to wait. Motherbox detected our secondary objective is also on this planet. Forever People! Let's go!" They were about to drive away, but he stopped and turned to Zoe "We would be honored if you accompanied us. It would be a chance for you to show us your skill."

Huntress was still unconvinced. What they said made some sick sense, but she was still wary about trusting a group of random people in a flying car. "Fine, but remember. If any of you try something funny, you will see my skill in gutting people with rusty spoon." She would really need to thank Artemis for this threat. It was a nice break from constant 'castrating this and that'. It also worked on both men and women alike.

* * *

Kaldur sat there in the room, leaning forward and resting his head on the closed fists.

"I was supposed to be the general, yet I behaved worse than a soldier. Instead of leading the others, I allowed my feelings to blind me. I am not fit for command and must resign as team leader." He closed his eyes. The confession visibly pained him.

"And who do you recommend to take your place?" Black Canary inquired.

"Artemis is to rough and distrustful. Kid Flash is too rush and can have problems keeping his head in the game. Miss Martian remains too eager to please. Superboy carries too much anger. Both Garth and Tula lack required experience. And Zoe is too... prejudged toward others." His voice was full of sorrow. He went through most of the team already.

"that leaves Robin and Neptune." Black Canary summarized.

"Robin is so young... But Percy is a natural. He took the lead while we all grieved. He rallied us and formed a plan." There was a glimmer of hope in his eyes.

"Kaldur. You are all young." She paused. "And Percy already went through it twice. He is older than he should be."

"I cannot shift this burden to either of them. Eh. It appears I must withdraw my resignation.

* * *

The boy in cowboy outfit introduced himself as Serifan. The young woman was called dreamer. Caucasian male with weird hairdo was Moonrider and their leader's name was Vykin. Only problem was with the man in front.

"I was named after animal that does not exist on earth. But you can call me... Wolf. That sounds nice.

Zoe gave him a skeptic look. "You never met any wolves, did you?"

This didn't bother the big man. "No. But I heard tales about their strength and incredible abilities. But what about Bear then?"

She gave him one look before focusing on the imaginary road. "Suits you much better." In truth she had no idea what to think about the weird batch.

They flew a bit further until Vykin pointed to a construction site. "Our rescue drill is down there. Sixty feet under ground."

Zoe looked around and saw what was across the building. "Great. Just our luck. The building on the other side of the street is Federal Reserves. Government keeps money there and if you asked me, it stinks robbery from a mile."

"It's a heist!" Serifan seemed overly enthusiastic. He stood up and pulled his guns. "Comeone' partners. Let's rat' in guns a' blazin' and round up them outlaws."

Dreamer gave Zoe an apologetic look. "Forgive him. He watched too much of those earth 'westerns' and..."

"You have my condolences. I am not the one to deal with 'em every day." She accepted. "But there is time to go in hard and time to go smart."

"It's your world, so we will follow your lead." Vykin agreed. This actually surprised Zoe. This male accepted her leadership without a shadow of doubt or spite. _Huh. Maybe they won't be THAT bad._

* * *

Everything went smoothly for the most part. Dreamer created an illusion that distracted the thugs while Moonrider and Vykin sneaked behind and took them out. At the same time, Zoe and Bear jumped down onto the other group that stayed down the hole. The others joined them once criminals were knocked out. Zoe ushered them to remain silent and swiftly jumped from rock to rock, remaining out of sight of anyone but her allies. They got to the site where several members of the Intergang were loading the carts of gold into the drill. She summoned her bow and already notched an arrow when Vykin straightened up and walked into the light.

"This drill and carts are the property of New Genesis. You will return them." He said that like it was supposed to actually get them to obey. Zoe just shook his head. _And I thought that this males were actually smart._

"Interfere... and things get ugly." Whisper A'daire, the second in command of intergang spoke while smiling.

"I am ugly." Bruno pushed her aside and activated his backpack which morphed into chest-mounted cannon. It started firing several red discs with bright red circuitry. Vykin created a mould of earth in front of himself to stop the attack, but projectiles just avoided the obstacle and surrounded him, shocking him with electricity. He was quite quickly brought to his knees. The discs flew to Bear next, but Serifan quickly disposed off them. Zoe just sighted deeply.

"Does this ever work with you guys?" She asked no one in particular before leaning from her cover and firing several red-tipped arrows in quick proximity. they all hit the villains square in chest and exploded, sending all flying into the wall. Their tech managed to survive undamaged, but one of the thugs got knocked out cold. She then fired some normal arrows at the discs surrounding Vykin. Only one remained when she had to stop and dodge because moonrider came flying with red thing on his back. The earth around them started to come at him like he was some weird magnet and soon he was burried alive. Whisper, who was the only one not affected by exploding arrows, summoned two red whips.

Dreamer stuttered. "Th-this... This weapons aren't from New Genesis. They are from the Enemy." She had fear in her eyes.

Zoe was now crouching and firing several arrows at once to keep up with constant barrage of red discs. "Which enemy? Be more specific."

"THE Enemy. The gods of Anti-life. They are from Apokalips." Dreamer finished.

Vykin was barely holding the pain. Seeing this, Bear charged blindly. Zoe gave up on reprimanding them at that point. Two thugs trusted their hands into the ground and turned it into quicksand which consumed charging giant. The momentary break from constant assault finally allowed Serifan to take care of discs that tortured Vykin.

* * *

"So you are telling me that after all you went through, including your own death in fire explosion, you are... peachy?"

"Peachy is not the word I would use." Wally was sitting there upside down with his legs gripping the top of the armchair. He was eating the popcorn by tossing it and catching it into his mouth. "But I think you got the core of it."

"So the feeling of burning again didn't phase you? And what about Artemis death?" At the last sentence he actually started to choke on his popcorn. He finally managed to swallow, but she noticed he subconsciously started to play with a ring on his finger. This ring had Man symbol on it. Dinah couldn't remember when he got it.

"Just because my organs went through BBQ twice in last few months does not automatically make me pyrophobic. And Artemis is my best friend. Of course I was worried. I would much rather talk about you and Olliver. Comeon. Give me some juicy gossip." He masked his emotions with smile

"Wally. You are in denial."

"I'm comfortable with that." he slightly relaxed.

* * *

Whisper jumped in front and started to slash her whips at them. If not for Vykin manipulating earth, she would probably cut Bear into pieces.

"The narrow tunnel gives them terrain advantage. We must."

"You must shut up and listen. Your tactic clearly isn't working." Zoe snapped at him. She then summoned another arrow, this time with bright white tip and aimed at the villains. "Close your eyes on my signal." She was aware that her enemies heard her scream and suddenly the tip turned black. She screamed "Now!" And let go of the arrow. Just as she expected, her enemies shielded their eyes just as her teammates. But to their surprise instead of a flash of light came cloud of darkness that consumed most of the light. Zoe morphed her bow into twin scimitars and jumped into the melee, taking advantage of confusion among her enemies. Her cuts and slashes were aimed mostly at the tech. Each of her slash was followed by a trail of silver light, which was the only thing that stood out of the sphere of darkness. While Huntress had no problem with seeing inside there, the Forever People were amazed. Trails of silver appeared and disappeared inside there, often followed by a scream of pain. When the darkness finally faded, out of the seven thugs and their two leaders, only Whisper was actually standing. Her whips were folded, but she quickly fixed that, lashing at Zoe. the energy coiled around her swords, but huntress just plunged the blades into the ground and let go before red electricity could shock her. Whisper tried to pull her whips back, but the could not move the swords from the ground. Each scimitar had a two-and-a-half feet blade and more than half of it was buried into hard rock. Zoe just cracked her knuckles.

"Time to teach thou some manners lady." She didn't even notice that some of old English slipped in. She then lunged at the criminal, who had to let go of her whips in order to stand a chance. The forever People wanted to jump and help, but Dreamer stopped them. Instead, they watched catfight in awe.

After first few seconds, it was clear as day that Huntress was just toying with intergang lieutenant. She effortlessly blocked each punch, kick and swipe that Whisper could throw at her without actually retaliating. "Listen sister. I had a really hard week. I accidentally kissed my friend and got us into awkward situation, I had to fight two gods who I really don't like, I had to watch all my friends die during sick mind game. To add to that, I missed last episode of my favorite series while stuck here in the corridor with you. And did I mention that I just learned that I am in fact an alien now? I. am. angry." Probably, the whole sentence would be scarier if not the mention of some TV show, but Zoe made up for it with last sentence. While the most of the speech was mostly calm, the last sentence held all the rage. For the first time, she actually confronted her emotions instead of bottling up. Whisper was no threat to her without the whips. Sure, she was master martial Artist, but Zoe had a hundred times more experience than this woman could gather through her whole life. So she just talked. Guess it was easier to open to someone who she knew would then get hit hard enough to forget all about it. "For three thousand years I remained faithful to my mistress and her alone. I followed her rules closely. Then she is gone and I suddenly find myself having feeling for a male. To worsen that, I had to kiss him to save his life." Whisper actually managed to get a hit into Zoe's stomach, but was met with her armor. "And you know what? It felt right. I enjoyed it. What am I supposed to think? I have no one to ask. This put a strain on relationship with only person besides my mistress, who mind you, is now gone. The same day I encountered some of the most irritating gods I had pleasure encountering. In their sick power-play they tried to use me and my friends as nightmare-fuled power generators. I of course killed them, but watching all my colleagues die and then go through trauma was actually painful. Not to mention that today I learned that my mistress, before she faded, transformed me into an actual alien." Whisper landed another hit when Zoe got distracted. This time, Zoe decided to retaliate. She grabbed the other woman's hand when she tried to follow on her previous punch. with a swift twist, she dislocated her shoulder. Then, a swift low kick from the huntress broke the right shin. Whisper wallowed in pain. Relentlessly, former Hesperid continued her assault. She served three straight punch to the solar plexus, only to then deliver a killer haymaker as a finishing blow. Whisper was knocked out cold and black brusies were already forming on her body. Zoe turned to see Forever people starring at her open-mouth.

"That. was. awesome. No cowboy could be that cool. You didn't even flinch and yet you kicked her. She only landed two hits... And then you started... and she couldn't... so cool..." Serifan was first to break the silence. He started to awe at how Zoe handled the situation.

"That was indeed impressive show of strength. Worthy of a true warrior. Even if a bit... brutal." Bear roared in his usual, booming voice

"I agree with Bear. It was indeed something. But it was also very brutal, if not outright cruel." Vykin commented. "But tell me. What language were you speaking in? Motherbox recognized it as 'Greek', but yet it was unable to translate all of it."

Zoe let out a sight. She completely forgot that they were standing there. Silently, she thanked the fates that she subconsciously reverted to Ancient Greek. "It was my first language. The Greek you know is modern form while I spoke the one that was used before humanity came. And in different reality at that." She walked over and picked her scimitars. _Good thing they couldn't understand. I am definitely not discussing my problems with strangers._

"I still don't get it. How did this bunch got their hands on both Apokalyptian and New Genesis tech?" Moonrider asked. They all turned to Bruno, who was massaging his head.

"Me not talking."

"You don't need to." Dreamer said. Suddenly a smoke came out of 'Ugly's' mind and formed into a deformed figure wearing a cloak over robes.

"Desaad." The Forever people grasped in surprise and fear.

"And he is?" Zoe asked, trying to be patient.

"We told you that there are two worlds which host New Gods. The New Genesis is the world of gods of Life, Freedom and The Source. We are at war with Apokalips, where live gods of Anti-life, Slavery and Degradation. Desaad is their chief scientist and torturer. His experiments are pure evil. His woks... Abomination."

"heh. He gives good stuff." Bruno chuckled. Suddenly, there was a familiar sound of single bell and all the members of the Intergang were eaten by a boom tube before heroes could react.

* * *

The Forever People plus Zoe in her moon chariot-turned-Maserati arrived on an old plane field.

"Motherbox detects Apokalyptian tech inside this building."

"Then what are we waiting for?" Bear was eager to rush into battle again.

"We are waiting for you males to find your brains." Zoe scowled. "Didn't you learn anything? I am pretty certain this is a trap that you males would just rush in."

"Am I supposed to feel offended by you calling on my gender?" Bear was visibly confused.

"Ugh. Gods help me..." She muttered under her breath. "Males stay here. Dreamer and I got this."

"Why do you let dreamer go and we stay? That's no fair!" Serifan cried.

"that's why. You are all useless, like all males." _All except one... Ugh. Stop thinking about him._

* * *

Zoe and dreamer made their way to the back doors. With her hunting knife, huntress swiftly removed the lock and doors opened. They sneaked in and jumped behind nearest crates.

" _Wait here"_ Zoe ordered the New Goddess. She then gracefully jumped up onto the crates, avoiding any patches of light. From there, she leaped onto the scaffolding and took a look from the top. She saw several intergang members readying their weapons. Bruno was next to a large table. Whisper was nowhere to be seen (testament to the beating Huntress gave her). Without really thinking, Zoe notched an arrow on her bow and took aim at the weapon crates. The tip turned bright red and she let go. Time seemed to slow down for her as projectile flew through air. It almost got to the target when someone caught it by the shaft. Huntress starred wide-eyed at Bruno Mannheim, who was now spinning the arrow between his fingers. All the goons turned their weapons at her location, as if they knew she was there all along. But that was impossible, right? She was far too superior for any males to spot her just like that.

"Get that bitch!" Without much ceremony Ugly unlocked his weapon and started to fire at her. All of his subordinates followed their leader and Zoe found herself under constant barrage of glowing red discs, energy beams and sonic waves (also in shades of crimson). She had to remain ever-vigilant and jump from one beam to another. She cursed under her breath as one of the beams managed to scratch her. The armor took most of the blast, but her shoulder was now hurting. She tried to retaliate, but even with all her huntress training it is impossible to aim while under this amount of barrage. She sent some random explosive arrows and knocked out few of the goons, but more just kept coming.

Suddenly, the wall was detonated and rest of the Forever People run inside. To Serifan's enjoyment, they did enter guns blazin' and took down some of the criminals. Now with their attention split between two separate attacks, the thugs found themselves loosing. That is until Bruno Mannheim opened several crates with a push of a button, only to reveal dog-like machines. They were easily the size of a hell-hound. Their joints glowed with omnious red light. On their head, besides giant maw full of sharp, metal teeth, there was single, giant red eye. Their tail was similar to Whisper's whip, except it was armored in several places.

"The Dogs of War!" Vykin screamed to his team. "We can't overcome that many alone. It is time!"

The other Forever People, now including dreamer, gathered around their leader. He rose the motherbox in the air and others did the same with empty hands. "TARO!" They slowly faded into golden energy and seemingly entered the alien computer. Their essence started to form into giant humanoid figure. At that, one of the thugs stepped to Ugly. His face and body split in half to reveal Desaad inside. He handed similar computer to the crime boss. Bruno just chuckled before tossing it at the forming giant. Zoe noticed it in the last moment. An arrow flew faster than she thought possible and pierced the device, pinning it right in front of the giant. The infernal shriek that came after that almost masked the ear-piercing bell ring.

"You... You killed him!" Desaad face was twisted in anger. "You killed the fatherbox!" Out of nowhere, he pulled a complicated gun and started firing at her. The weapon had a perfectly round barrel attached to hand-gun grip. Below the grip there was another barrel, but only half-round. They were almost equal in length, with lower part ending just a bit shorter. The beam that came was also crimson in color. He managed to fire several shots before Infinity Man just smitten him with his eye-beam. Desaad cursed and allowed a boom tube to consume him, leaving the battle scene before he got consumed. The torture-master was not looking to the meeting with his overlord. He would get some first-hand experience with his profession.

Other thugs were quickly dealt with. Once all the Apokalyptian tech was no longer a threat and the thugs were out cold, Forever people separated and Dreamer run over to Zoe. While none of the beams that the Apokalyptian New God fired at her connected, the previous injury got strained and did not look that great. Of course, Huntress tried to shrug it off, but Dreamer could actually be quite persuasive with her care for others. They used Motherbox to heal her injury and patch the armor.

"Thank you. I... I don't know what I would do without you..." She swallowed her pride and continued. "All of you. I acted like a male and rushed without actually checking the situation over."

To her surprise, Dreamer stood up and gave her a stern look. "What is it with you and Male? Just because they were born of different gender does not mean they are better or worse! It was your distrust that could've killed us all!" Of all the people that could have scolded Zoe on that, Dreamer seemed like the least plausible candidate. And yet, there they were, two New Goddesses, arguing over her trust issues.

"Look. I came to learn hard way that males are nothing but trouble. I would suggest you think about it before they drag you down." Her expression darkened at the memory of Heracles. Several thousands years and that betrayal still pained her.

Dreamer calmed. Her expression was that of compassion and understanding. "One bad experience shouldn't cross out entire species. Maybe if you give them chance, some men can prove you wrong." Zoe wanted to frown, but she couldn't. _One already did. Maybe..._ "Please. Promise me that you will try, okay?" This woman was truly an embodiment of compassion if Zoe ever met one.

"I... I will try. Thank you again... For everything. And for the love of the old gods, can someone explain to me what that thing was supposed to be? You morphed into giant robot!" She swiftly changed the subject. Her mind kept replaying the words in her head. _Give them chance..._

* * *

**Metropolis  
October 24, 03:03**

Lex Luthor stood next to yellow-claded man as several Lex-corp employers unloaded a large chunk of ice. Inside, there was a body of one of the most scary monster that dared to walk the face of earth. Doomsday.

"I see our plan worked. There weren't any trouble with moving the giant through the country?" Luthor asked the other man.

"Not at all. The League was so busy handling the missing of their protegees that they did not bother with some robbery of government property in Alaska. Not that anyone would now reveal what they lost. It is sad that we lost both of the gods, but they served their purpose."

"How fast can you... show our friend here the light?" Lex continued to question his ally

"Soon. By the end of November at worst." Eobard Thawn grinned. "Soon, everyone will see the light... in some form." He let out a chuckle.


	20. Words Harm

**Jump City  
** **October 24, 8:16**

Zoe walked into Percy's apartment only to see him on the couch, sleeping. The TV was still on, but nothing was playing. She silently walked to the kitchen to get herself some coffee. While standing next to the machine, she could see Percy's peaceful expression while he slept. Whatever he talked about with Canary, it must've really helped him. Even with all the tiredness, her mind kept replaying the events of last night. And what Dreamer said to her. True, the more time she spent with Percy, the more she had to question her views. He was obvious example, but now that she kept reflecting on it there were also others. Kaldur was most respectful, surpassing even Percy. Garth was a little more rough around the edges, but she could see he really cared for Tula. Dick was... a bit like this Nico kid. Both had to grow up faster and both were alone except for their distant father. Still, he also didn't act like she would expect from a Male. Conner was like a male version of Phoebe. Distrustful, brash, but also loyal and protective. The only team member that matched what she thought of males was Wally. But even with all his faults, he was still reliable. They all weren't that bad... _And there is Perseus._ Percy was the living proof that Artemis didn't exclusively hate all males. He managed to earn her mistress favor. It was all too confusing for her. And she had no one to talk to...

"I see water boy found himself a girl. I am sad it's not me though." Zoe heard an irritating voice behind her. How anyone, let alone a well-known wanted assassin, managed to sneak on her was a question for another day. Cheshire had her mask off, but she was still in her outfit.

Without too much thought Zoe crossed her bracelets and summoned her own superhero gear. Bow appeared in her hands with arrow already notched. "You must really be stupid to come here, killer." She spat at the woman in front of her.

"There there." Cheshire rose her hands up in the air. She was supposedly unarmed, but there was no guarantee. "If you are not up with the news, I got kicked out of the shadows Mooney, so calm down." Just as she finished arrow embed itself into the window-sill next to her.

"Call me this one more time and they will find your body on actual moon. And just because you left the shadows does not mean you are absolved. Now tell me what brings thee here."

"Well, if you must know, I came to see Percy. Hoped he would like to go for another club date. The last one was kinda bummer." The poor window-sill had another arrow in it. "Whoa. Someone sure is possesive..." She suddenly had a wide grin on her face. "So tell me. How is he? His body is so... And this lips, so full. You live with him under one roof. If I were you, I would eat him alive already." Another arrow embed itself right next to her head. Zoe was now frowning with irritation.

"You shut up now or I will pierce your tongue with exploding arrow."

"I don't hear a denial." Cheshire was grinning widely, giving Zoe a perfect target line made of her white teeth. It was really tempting, but on the other hand she wanted to find out why the cat woman suddenly had a suicidal thoughts.

"Tell me why you are really here and maybe I will actually just put you in jail."

Suddenly, Cheshire image shimmered and she was gone without a sound, only to appear next to the fridge. She opened it and pulled out a bottle of orange juice. The image shimmered again and she was now standing right in the middle of the glass wall separating living area from the kitchen. "I got thirsty. You don't mind."

"Talk. Now." Zoe was on the edge. She really wanted to put exploding arrow through her. But then she would need to do the cleaning and probably explain the mess to Percy.

"Aren't you a feisty one. Fine. I am looking for some help. I was hoping I could cash the favor Percy owed me."

"Like Hades he would. You might as well teleport yourself to jail already, because he would..."

"I would what? Girls. Stop screaming so loud. I am trying to sleep here." Very tired and very still-asleep Percy walked into the kitchen. His mind didn't comprehend what he was seeing at first and decided to get himself some coffee. He pulled a mug from the cupboard and it hit him. He immediately turned around, tossing the mug at Cheshire. He would of course miss by a whole foot, probably breaking the glass wall in the process if Jade didn't catch it mid-air. "What. the. Hades. is. Going. On? Cheshire? Oh. Hi Z. Had a good night?" The two woman could practically see the steam going out of his head as he processed the whole situation.

"Oh." Cheshire put one finger to her lips. "I think we broke him. What a shame. He was so cute. And quite handsome." She put out a seductive grin. Zoe came to really hate this woman. _Who does she think she is to barge here and try to steal Percy from me. Wait what?!_ Her train of thoughts abruptly crashed. She turned at Percy who silently watched the whole scene.

"Okay. Enough. What is going on here and why does Fates, Chaos, Gods, Universe, whatever driving force there is hate me so much?" Demigod sighted.

"Miss Deadly Assassin here broke in early morning. She also stole the orange juice. The one I spiced with nectar." It was Zoe's turn to grin as Cheshire, who was just taking a first swing from the bottle spilled it all out. "Or maybe the other one... I forgot to label them. Silly me."

"I came to cash in a favor you owe me." Percy only gave Cheshire a confused glare at that. "I did save your life a couple times and did you pay me?"

"I did."

"Details. I need help and that's what you superheroes do, right?"

Zoe was about to protest, but Percy silently nodded. She sent him a meaningful, angry glare, but he just shrugged. "Might as well hear you out. But no tricks."

"Who me? I am a good girl?" If glares could kill, Zoe would slaughter the assassin ten times over by now. "I am running. Since the two of you and this amazon cousin of yours brilliantly decided to wreck the Infinity Island, I ditched the Shadows. But it's not that simple. Now I have a target on my back. Too much sensitive secrets on the line. I managed on my own for some time, but they are closing in on me. It's not like I have many people I can trust this days..." She was serious for once and it was what unnerved Percy. Cheshire was rarely serious during this short time as his body guard. She was never this serious.

"You can't just expect us to help a known criminal." Zoe raged. this woman was really irritating her. There was this feeling that she couldn't shrug. Like there was something more that met the eyes. "You ditched your job, betrayed Percy, came here and tried to kill him, Aided Ra's Al Ghoul escape and then you expect us to forget all of it because you come here? You didn't even apologize."

"Maybe I should do the talking?..." Percy asked, a bit uncomfortable. Zoe sent him a wolf stare that would Batman's look like puppy eyes. "Or not. You are doing great."

Cheshire chuckled at their interaction. "Whipped."

"You are not helping your case here." Percy responded.

"She don't have a case to begin with." Zoe corrected him.

"I will take my leave then. Maybe one of the other team members of yours will be more hospitable. One told me that you all had quite... traumatic experience yesterday. Maybe they will want someone to talk to..." Her image shimmered as another arrow flew right through the place where she was sitting. It was barely too late, because Jade disappeared like a Cheshire cat. The glass wall shattered, much to the dismay of place owner. In the hindsight making the walls of glass was not the best idea when you live with overreacting huntress.

"Great. Now we need to report it to Captain Atom. It's the mole thing again." Percy groaned. He wasn't a part of the team when it emerged, or had a possibility to know about details mole was supposed to know, so he was cleaned from suspicion, but it didn't ease his tension. The memory from Second Titan War still haunted him. Silena betrayed the camp, many demigods defected to the titans, it was a mess back then. It was hard to know who to trust.

"Mole?"

"Well, there was a case of leaked info back when I was still going solo. We thought it was already over with Tornado turning on them, but it looks like it is far from it. Now let's go. We better go report it asap." He started to walk to the exit. Zoe decided that the time was as good as ever. She grabbed his wrist and pulled him back. "Wha..."

"Shut up. Sit and listen." Zoe placed him on a chair and took a deep breath. She didn't really think this through. She just spun into action. Something about the visit of the overconfident assassin, the previous night and talk with Canary just made her finally break. "About that kiss. I... We..." All the confidence she mustered was gone. _This is ridiculous. I am the New Goddess of Moon and Hunt. I can beat the living Hades out of any monster, criminal or idiot. I am THE Zoe Nightshade, the slayer of thousands of monsters. I can do this._

"I am sorry. I don't know what got into me..." Percy had his head low. "I just woke up from a dream where Annabeth, the real one, not an illusion, pretty much broke up with me all over again and I just... I wasn't thinking clear. Please forgive me."

 _He is asking for my forgiveness? Gods._ "No." This caused him to cringe. "I will not forgive you because you have nothing to apologize for. Last twenty four hours made me realize that... I might have been wrong in my treatment of male part of society. And I was unfair to you. I could break the kiss any second, but in truth, I enjoyed it. It felt... right." She sighted. _And here we go._

The expression on Percy's face was indescribable. The mixture of relief, happiness, fear, worry, content, confusion, dread, surprise and many more. It was like he didn't know what emotions to feel so he just felt them all at once. "I... I enjoyed it too. It felt right too." He managed to muster in his state. To his credit, it was more than anyone would expect by looking at his expression. They sat there in silence for good five minutes, just starring at each other, neither really knowing what to say next.

Finally, Zoe broke the silence. "So what happens now?"

"Hades would I know." Zoe's face twisted. She had no idea how it worked. Her only other interest with male ended with being used, banished from home and joining the hunt for three hundred years. Any hope of Percy taking the initiative quickly melted as well. She looked him deep in the eyes. The two whirpools of sea-green stared back at her charcoal black. _Welp. There goes nothing._ She suddenly pulled him by his shirt, closing the distance between their faces. Zoe read a total of three romantic novels throughout her life, only one in the last two centuries. She always laughed at the impulses people had in this storied. And yet here she was.

Her lips slammed onto his. The familiar-unfamiliar feeling of bliss traveled through her body. It was a bit electric. Of course Percy was at first confused, but it quickly passed and he reciprocated. He wrapped his arms around her waist while hers were now resting on his shoulders. The feeling that overtook him was similar to what he felt when he was kissing Annabeth, but at the same time different. Zoe seemed more... absorbed into it. Percy dismissed any thoughts of his ex-girlfriend and instead focused on the woman in front of him.

Zoe's mind was going haywire. She took a leap of faith twice today. If two months ago someone suggested that she would be alive again, kissing a boy _A man_ , and her mistress would be gone, she would shoot them with a star. Where did you think shooting stars came from? She was angry with someone and her mistress did give her a bow after all... Zoe's mind wandered it's own paths as she continued to immerse herself in the feelings. It was magical. The scent of sea breeze mixed with her own forest scent. It a bit like when they first met by the cliff. The forest meeting the sea under the full moon. Back then he was in love with Annabeth and she was still a sworn maiden. Time changes people. But often for the better. Definitely for the better in that case.

Percy had a really strong lungs. He could go without air for a really long time. it was good five minutes when he and Zoe finally broke up the kiss. "That... That felt right too..." He spoke while panting heavily. She was also taking heavy breaths, but not because of lack of air. Zoe was pretty sure she could go another five minutes before she would need to stop for some oxygen.

"Indeed it did. Listen... I... I... Thou... We... UGH! What of us now?" She almost screamed in rage. She could not gather her words. Her long hair was now shaggy and her mind was still hazy.

"I think it would be proper for me to ask you out for a date?" Percy chuckled. While Zoe was angry, he saw that it was more irritation than proper anger. "How does next Friday sound?"

When he spoke, she felt her anger drain away. The feeling of bliss from the kiss still lingered. "It sounds too far into future. It's not like either of us has any day-jobs and our night-job usually starts after eleven."

"Tomorrow then?" He sounded hopeful.

"Okay." She said almost immediately. _What is going on with me? Did I change this much in just few weeks?_

* * *

**New York City  
October 31 19:26**

Police forensic team investigated the area of breaking. They already checked most of it and so far there were no evidence whatsoever. The lead detective was talking with curator.

"Out of all the priceless artifacts gathered here, why would they want to steal this staff of werewolf?" He asked the elderly man.

"It's sword of Beowulf sir. The legend says that it grants incredible power to those pure of heart. Whoever wields the sword cannot be defeated by a mortal nor a god and monsters shall fear the might he possesses. There is even an ancient spell that unlocks the power. ' _Abannan Afol Beowulf'."_

"Fairy tales. There is no such thing as magic." Detective dismissed the Curator's claim

"Said the guy who lives one city away from an alien." One of the passing forensics deadpanned.

"Get back to work Dibney. Nobody pays you for being a comedian here."

"Whatever. The thief is long gone anyway, so there is no need to hurry."

Suddenly, a man in long white coat landed in front of the three, causing all other police officers to immediately pull out their guns at him. He had three claw marks going over his left eye. He held the sword loosely. "Harm thanks you for your compliance. Harm had the sword, but he needed the incantation." The villain grabbed the scabbard with one hand and enforced his grip on the handle. " _Abannan Afol Beowulf"_

There was an orange discharge of mystical energy and rotating, circular glyph appeared over Harms heart. "B-But Th-thats impossible. O-Only the pure of heart can wield the sword." Curator stammered as he tried to walk back. Most of the police officers opened fire at the sword guy, but orange energy fried all the bullets to dust before they reached him. Dibney was smart enough to just run away without looking back. Better to be fired from a job, than fried at the job. Should he turned just for a moment, he would see the orange lightning hit the other policemen and turn them into charred copses. Detective tried to fire something, cursing at Ralph while the curator made his escape. The brave officer of the law made his end by the fast cut of the psycho's sword. Curator managed to get to next room and activate the security. The iron bars fell down, locking any and all entrance to the room. He kept running away. Suddenly, a shadow flew over his head and Harm landed right in front of the terrified curator.

"Harm does not like to be run from. He could not stop the policeman, but he can stop you!"

"But what of the pure of heart."

"The legend said Harm's heart had to be pure. But it didn't specify pure good. It can be pure evil." He finished as he cut off the head of the curator.

* * *

**Mount Justice**   
**October 31, 19:41**

Percy walked in and saw the Team (minus the atlanteans) prepare for the Halloween Party. He was tempted to go somewhere with Zoe, but Diana snapped her right before he could ask her. She said the two of them needed a 'quality girl time'. It was okay by him, but why at Halloween? Okay. Most of the other days he and Zoe were inseparable. They had a date at last Monday, then they went to amusement park at Wednesday and to cinema at Friday. Other days they spent cuddled on the couch watching some movies at home. Being a billionaire had it pros, but also it cons. As of late he started to receive more and more calls from different companies with offers of cooperation. They smelled an inexperience heir to giant fortune and vultures started to gather. Oh well! Something to worry about later.

Percy himself was wearing a full Greek armor he forged for himself. Back at the camp he never was nearly as good as children of Hephaestus, but he did learn simple things. He also missed the shield Tyson got him, but maybe it was for the best. It held so many painful memories. This one was made of Tiber metal, much like his armor, but he spray-painted is bronze. The only mismatched part was his belt. Even in camo mode, it was out of place, but it didn't matter. It was just a Halloween costume. Except he spent 30 hours making it. But no need to go overboard, right?

"Hi guys."

"Oh! Percy! Good to see you. Where have you been all week?" M'gann asked.

"Making this beauty." He spun around, allowing the gathered crowd to marvel at his costume. He had a greek hoplite helmet to match and he even got himself a replica of riptide. This one might not have turned into a pen, but matched the rest nicely. He did engrave a small trident at the base, just for the sake of tradition.

"You made it all yourself?" Zatanna's eyes went wide. "It must have been a lot of work."

"You bet. I also got myself a matching sword. So, you going to a party?"

"Ayup!" Artemis and Wally answered at the same time. She then hit his arm and shouted "COKE! Ha. I score." This earned confused look from all the other gathered, except from captain Marvel who walked right now, wearing a skull painting on his face. "what? You never did that when you were younger? Comeon."

"Nope" *Zatanna

"Nah." *Robin*

"Anop" *Wally*

"No" *Conner*

"we did not have such a tradition on mars" *M'gann*

"Don't look at me, I am from another world too." *Percy*

"Seriously guys?" Captain Marvel asked after the series of declines. "When two people say the same thing at the same time, first to touch the other in the shoulder and shout 'Coke' earns a point. Or a coke in some cases."

"It must be a really old thing or some new stich." Robin said.

"Weren't you suppose to be with Bat on some assignment?" Wally asked curiously.

"Yeah, but Captain Atom set Batman up with Wonder Woman on a dinner so they could discuss things in civilized way."

"Oh right! He took Superman with him as a moral assistance." Captain Marvel explained.

"This could be interesting." Percy grinned.

"Why?" M'gann asked curiously.

"Because Diana took Zoe as hers."

"o-oh." was the common response from most of them. The team did not get to meet the more lenient Zoe. Since last week she spent almost solely with Percy in their apartment or around Jump City on the other side of the country. "A-yup. I guess things could turn interesting."

"I didn't know league had a Costume Party this year." Zatanna changed the subject. "Dad didn't tell me anyways."

"Costume party?" Percy asked curiously.

"the one you and Captain Marvel are going to. We have party at our school with sneaking Dick, Zatanna, Artemis and Wally as exchange students. Nobody will recognize anyone there anyway."

"Actually, I..." Captain Marvel sheepishly smiled while trying to gather courage to go with them when Percy grabbed his arm and started to drag him to the Zeta tube.

"Actually, _we_ are late." the Demigod finished. He had a frown on his face.

"Have fun on your party!" Artemis shouted after them when a familiar sound of teleportation got to them.

* * *

**Manhattan  
** **October 31, 20:16**

Percy was walking through the city with captain marvel following him. He already activated his belt and was now in Neptune outfit.

"Listen. I am happy that you are taking me to a party, but that's no big deal. And what with a costume change. You worked so hard on the previous one." Captain Marvel finally stopped, using the strength of Heracles to get out of the grip. Percy was really strong.

"We are not going to that kind of Party. I want to punch something so we are finding some action. I checked the reports and there was a break-in at the museum. The only survivor said that there is magical sword on the loose. I thought it would be better than some stupid party." He was still frowning. How could they not invite him. He was part of the team. _Maybe they tried but you were busy with Zoe..._

"Oh! That sort of Party." Marvel wiped the pain of his face and started to float. "Then count me in." He cheerfully smiled. Percy only laughed and jumped up on the roofs using his tremor control to launch himself. After he landed, he was met with a tip of a sword. Captain Marvel floated next to him. The guy holding the sword was smiling smugly. "Looks like harm's first prey came to him."

"Dude. You are sure you want to go for it? I was considered the best swordsman of last three centuries before the war with giants." Percy teased.

"Harm will not indulge in such pettiness. He will slay the heroes!" The villain then swung his sword at then, but it came to stop at a golden shaft of a trident. The orange sparks met with light-blue ones and created an explosion that pushed both of them back. captain Marvel was about to join the fun, but Percy stopped him.

"Let me have this one. You will get the next criminals we find. Deal?"

"Fine. But be careful. He seems to be a strong warrior."

"Maybe, but I am handsome...er? Oh, I am better." Percy groaned at the failed tease. He lunged forward to meet Harm head on. Their weapons clashed over and more sparks came around, but this time trident absorbed them, glowing slightly. Percy spun his weapon in front of himself, catching the sword with it and pulling it to the ground before Harm could even react. Or so he thought, because as soon as he stopped spinning and used the prongs to hold weapon in place, the aspiring villain pulled his weapon up with all the strength he could muster and Percy went flying onto different roof. This gave captain Marvel a signal to act, because Percy definitely was not dealing with this as well as he thought the best swordsman would. He zoomed up and summoning all the might of Zeus and Strength of Heracles he dashed down on the psycho. When his fist met with the naked chest, Harm didn't even flinch. The attack had no effect on him and Captain Marvel felt multiple bones in his hand shake and almost shatter. It was like he hit a metal block with a naked fist as Billy Batson. He let out a painful whimper.

"Ouch. What are you dude?"

"Harm is Harm."

"We get it. Your name is Harm, which is exactly what is going to happen to you if you don't give up now." Percy landed back on their roof, sending a single quake causing the villain to loose a bit of balance. Not waiting for the aspiring psycho to reject his generous offer, he instead decided to shoot him with a stream of pressurized water and used his confusion to advance. The swing of trident was met with the blade of the sword. Whoever he was, Harm shown to have reflexes better than any demigod and speed to match them. Percy decided to stop playing. He wanted to use his favorite technique of creating water bubble and playing a shark when suddenly an arc of orange lightning hit him in the chest.

"Harm is tired of playing games. With the sword He is unbeatable." Percy only groaned as next wave of orange lightning hit him.

"Marvel! Go get her. I will keep him busy." Percy managed to overcome the pain and raise his trident. Now most of the energy was being sucked into the divine weapon. The golden prongs started to crackle with blue lightning and Neptune released the discharge at Harm, who caught it into his sword. The two weapons slowly charged with more and more power. The coursing magic created feedback loop that kept increasing in power. Finally, the critical mass was achieved and they were pushed back by the discharge. Large part of the (luckily empty) house was turned into rubble.

Percy groaned and lifted himself from the ground. No matter what he did, this guy seemed to be able to beat him. "Secret!" Percy turned around to see a young girl. She was pale and had a white-blonde hair pulled back with the help of a hairband. Her dress was even whiter. "Secret!" She shouted again and run in the alley. There was a strange aura of death around her, which sent involuntary chills down the Demigod's spine. He decided to follow her.

"Stop running from Harm. He will catch you."

In response, Percy sent a tremor wave at him, causing him to stagger for brief moment in which Percy jumped onto the roof and jumped into the other alley.

"Secret!" The girl shout-whisper again and disappeared behind the corner. This time, Percy decided not to follow her.

"Come back and talk!". To his surprise, the girl suddenly appeared in front of him. Like literally floated from the ground.

"You... You are different." She spoke in surprised voice.

"Yeah... Who are you?"

"My name... I..." Suddenly, the image dispersed. Before Percy understood, his supernatural reflexes acted up. He spun around to block the overhead slash before it happened. If someone asked him later what gave him the idea, he would not be able to tell. It was just pure instinct.

"Oh Hades. Here we go again..." He sighted and took the battle stance.

* * *

At the same time in more prestigious part of New York Diana, Bruce, Clark and Zoe sat around the table in empty restaurant. The waiter brought them four sets of menu and left. The place was situated 600 feet above ground. From the window they had a great view on the city panorama.

"I still can't believe you rented the whole place. People need to wait for years to get a reservation." Clark moaned. He wanted to take Lois here for some time, but queue was just impossible.

"It's not every day that a princess, a duchess, a billionaire and a reporter meet. They agreed to make an exception." Bruce had his signature smirk.

"It is rather nice. Definitely... quiet..." Zoe was unsure what to think. When Diana asked her to come as her plus-one to this peace talk she didn't know what to expect. "also what do you mean by duchess?"

"This is your official title. The Duchess Zoe Nightshade of Themyscira." Wonder Woman explained. "My mother decided to grant you this status after she heard your story. You are a Titaness. You are always welcome to come. I was actually planning on telling you this later." She sent Bruce a death stare. This made Clark flinch, but Batman looked unfazed.

"Let's calm down and order something." Clark suggested quickly, trying to avoid further pissing off the amazon(s). He proceeded to open the menu and he saw the price of an appetizers and received a miniature heart attack. "Whoa. My rent is lower than that..." The other three chuckled.

"Don't worry Clark. I will pay for all of us." Bruce offered. Zoe stopped herself from scowling. _He is not trying to seduce you. He is just trying to be nice. Percy is wealthier than him anyway._ She let a small smirk creep on her face at this thoughts. Most of her knowledge about big and scary bat came from the son of Poseidon and it's fitting to say he wasn't a fan. They all ordered, although Clark tried to be modest. Once the food was served, an uncomfortable silence fell on the group.

"Should we worry that someone will listen?" Zoe finally asked.

"No. I made sure of that." Clark pulled out a small stone with runic circle on it. He then touched the rune with his middle and index finger and it briefly glowed golden before turning light blue. "This is supposed to... distort the sound waves and recompose them at our ears. Basically, to anyone else, including recording device should any be in proximity, it will seem like you are just discussing some business while I try to interview you three."

"Okay then. Let's get this done with." Diana spoke.

"Agreed. Why are you so defensive of Perseus?" Bruce jumped directly to business. Zoe and Clark sighted. This was going to be a long night.

"Why are _you_ so suspicious of him?" She retorted. "He came here tired, confused and broken. We should have helped him, but you instead wanted to imprison him. He was nothing but helpful and you kicked him of the team..." She wanted to continue, but he interrupted her.

"He killed a man Diana. And he said he would do it again in a heartbeat."

"He saved a mother from being shot."

"There were other ways."

"You can't know that."

Bruce and Diana kept arguing. Clark just sighted. _"I just wish the two of them just kissed and stop acting like a pair of preschoolers."_ He knew neither of the two superheroes would hear him mutter that, but he failed to account for Zoe's enhanced senses. One of her domain was the Hunt after all.

"What do you mean?" She asked. The couple was now in heated argument over something from the Great War.

"What?" The realization dawned upon him. "You heard me?" She nodded. "Well. You see... Both of them are dense as..."

"Percy?" She chuckled. "When he was fourteen he sneaked on a cross-country quest to save a girl. He was willing to hold the weight of the sky just to save her, and yet it took him two more years to finally realize that he was indeed in love with her." The two of them chuckled.

"Yeah, but this is going on for like... seven years now. There is even a betting pool among some leaguers on who will make the first move." He revealed to the Huntress. She was a bit outraged, but then she remembered that when she was still in the hunt there was this giant betting pool on when a certain male demigod 'singer/artist' get killed by Apollo for the transgressions against music. She almost won once, but the sneaky bastard somehow wriggled his way out.

"Well, that was fun, but I think we should get _something_ done here. I had other plans tonight." She then reached for the spoon, spun it between her fingers few times before launching it at Bruce's plate. It clanged, then flew to hit the ceiling and was reflected right at Diana's plate, only to return to her hand. The previously arguing superheroes were now starring at her wide-eyed. "Now that I have your attention. Can someone explain to me what is the actual argument about. talked about great war which I can assure you did not involve Percy in any way."

"The same as always. Bruce and his 'no killing' rule. By his inaction thousands die at the hands of Joker."

"The act of taking a life is wrong, no matter what life you take."

"Heard about guilt through lack of action?" Diana snapped.

"maybe let's calm down?" Clark offered.

"Maybe this was a mistake." Bruce said calmly and stood up, but a strong hand pulled him back down. "Let. Me. Go." he growled at Clark.

"No. This feud must end today. You can't be in control of everything Bruce. Some things are beyond you. I know that you wish it was otherwise, but you can't be everywhere at once."

"While I respect your noble ideas" Zoe spoke up. "They are too pure for the darkness of the world."

"The 'noble ideas' is what separates us" He made a hand gesture at the four of them. "from the criminals. If we take justice into our own hands we will be no better than them. Diana could walk into the white house and snap presidents neck and no one would be able to stop her. Clark can wipe out entire city in one minute. Who knows what Perseus can do. If we push the line, there is no knowing where it stops." Bruce was visibly angry. Something that was actually rare for him.

"Yet, you don't have problem with killing alien invaders." Clark pointed out. Bruce was actually taken aback. He expected Superman to be on his side. "There were several invasions and each time you didn't bother with the lives of invaders. Just because they don't look the same, does not mean they aren't like you. They could have families, goals, dreams. They were soldiers. You are right. The rules are there to be. Killing is wrong, but sometimes, it is necessary."

"So what? You expect me to just abandon everything I believe in?"

"I for once expect thou to just drop the righteous facade and leave Percy alone. He likes to say 'The Sea does not like to be contained' and usually trying to control him can end badly. Like 'disappear into another reality' badly." Zoe said. Her face did not reveal too many emotions.

"Zoe is right. Follow your code, but don't force it on the others."

Bruce was frowning, but he relented. "Fine." He grumbled. "But this is begging for disaster." he stood up and walked out of the room, tossing a large wad of cash at the waiter, not even bothering it was held together by golden clip with diamond 'W' on it. The other heroes watched him.

"I am no daughter of Aphrodite, thank the gods, but I think here goes your betting pool."

* * *

Percy was actually beginning to tire. The last fifteen minutes were hectic. They kept exchanging blow for a blow and neither managed to find an opening. What Harm lacked in skill, he made up with sheer ferocity and 'might'. He was faster, stronger and more agile. At the other hand Percy had some tricks up his sleave too. They were back on the roofs. Two News Station's Hellicopters floated around them and Police cut out the area.

"You can't beat harm." The villain sounded as if he was not even remotely tired. "For he can't be defeated by mortal nor a god." To his surprise, Percy actually smiled at that. The left part of Neptune's mask was destroyed so he retracted the bottom and used only googles, thus his smirk was visible.

"I think you just revealed your greatest weakness pal." Percy taunted

"Harm has no weakness. Harm is unbeatable." With that, the pale man resumed his assault. this time, Percy's moves were a bit more sure. He finally found a tactic.

"Correction. You can't be defeated by mortals or gods. But you see... I am neither." Using the confusion this sentence caused he kicked the blade out of Harm's hand and swiped his legs under him. The villain hit the ground with a loud THUD!. "You are speaking with one and only Son of Poseidon, the Demigod. Not quite mortal, not quite god." To prove his point, he put the tip of the middle prong at his neck and pushed just a bit. Harm felt a hot stream of blood travel down. Percy suddenly felt a presence nearby. His life sense picked something new just appear. But it was not the same like other mortals. More... empty. The Demigod figured it out rather quickly. "And I think there is someone here who wants to see you."

True to his words, a girl in white rose from the ground. Harm tried to crawl back at the sight, but the trident pinning him down made it rather hard. "No! Harm's heart is pure. Harm has no weakness. Harm is worthy!"

"Secret!" She tried to say more, but words stuck in her throat. Seeing this, Percy touched her shoulder and sent a pulse of energy through her. He had no idea if this would work, but he just focused on the power Hades gave him and tried to extend it. To his relief, it worked. The blessing did not leave him, but he felt a bit weaker. Some energy left him, but the powers like life-sense or ghost touch were still there. "Thank you."

Harm visibly cringed at the sound of the voice. "No! His heart is pure. He made sure of it. You are not real. Harm's heart is pure. He got rid of only thing he loved. He is still worthy!" At this point, he started to babble uncomprehendingly. Secret just walked forward, passing through his waving hands and reached for his heart. The circular orange glyph appeared for brief moment, but shattered under her touch and she pulled an orb of white light, which then dissipated. Harm tried to call his sword to him, but it rose and flew toward the scabbard he had on his back instead. The hand grabbed the guard, locking the weapon in place. Percy smiled at now powerless harm. He then spun his trident around and hit him on the head with blunt end. Turning to the girl he nodded.

"He's someone close to you?"

"He is... He was my brother. But he... Billy changed. I don't know why. After our parents died he promised to take care of me, but then something inside of him snapped."

"Now that he is stopped, will you be able to..."

"Pass? I don't know. My... I didn't stay to stop him. I don't know my unfinished business..."

"I remember Nico telling me about something similar. Sometimes spirits are just... lost. No one comes for them. Let me try something." Percy placed a hand on her forehead and started to channel energy again. He had no idea what he was really doing, but it was doing something. "For your heroics. For stopping the evil. For aiding the one blessed by Hades. I grant you passage to Elysium. May your journey be pleasant. May Charon transport you to your destiny. May the judges look at your deeds and deem them worthy of the eternal bliss." The words came to him and his voice changed a bit. There was a faint echo of someone else speaking. She glowed slightly and started to dissipate into nothingness.

"Thank you. Thank you for this." She let a single tear fall. Slowly, she fades. Percy pulled a golden drachma from his belt and tossed it into her dissipating body. It faded with her.

"To make sure Charon will not be giving you trouble. Good luck... Secret." He chuckled and went to pick unconscious Harm like a sack of potatoes. In his other hand he carried the sword of Beowulf. _This thing better goes somewhere safer than museum. What was Wally's catchphrase again? Oh right! SOUVENIR!_

The reporter in the helicopter turned to the camera-man next to her. "Did you get any of this? It can be our ticket to fame. I will show Cat Grant what real news look like."

Her companion turned the camera off and pressed some buttons. The screen at the side displayed the final of the battle. Then, there was white light and suddenly it turned off. He gave a confused look. Suddenly, a small smoke came from where the memory card was.

"What just happened? Please tell me the recording is okay!" Reporter screamed in panic at her crewman.

"Maybe some things aren't meant to be seen..." he spoke mysteriously. She frowned.

"My career definitely will not be seen after this!" She moaned with resignation.

* * *

In the underworld Hades sat on his throne. Persephone was on the other, equally large throne on his right. To his left there was a smaller one, on which his son Nico sat. The new god of Magic was now his full-time heir and aide. In front of them was a young girl in white dress.

"Tell me child. Do you know who I am?"

"You... You are Hades, aren't you? The man who helped me get here talked about someone named Hades... that's you, right?" She spoke shyly, but they could hear curiosity in her voice.

"Yes young one. I am indeed the lord of the underworld. The man you speak of is a friend of my son. Now, We have a question for you and we want you to think about it very carefully before giving an answer. You see... I need a favor. The world you live was cut away from us gods. Most souls find their way down there on their own, but some, like you, get lost. If you wish, I can allow you passage into Elysium just like Perseus promised. But I can also allow you to return to the world with my blessing. In exchange, I need you to do something for me."

"Wh-What do you mean return. I died."

"Indeed. But you weren't judged yet. Gods can't enter the sealed world just like that. Yet, there exist some... loopholes to this rule. I need you to...

For the next half an hour, Hades explained certain things to Secret. Finally, she thought about it for a moment.

"But... Are you sure I will be able to become normal again?"

"It remains to be seen. It isn't exactly something that happens often. Or ever. I can promise that you will always have a place at Elysium, provided you fulfill your end of a deal."

Both Persephone and Nico remained silent for the whole ordeal. Their expressions didn't even change. Those who did not know better could think that they are indeed mother and son and not step-mother and step-son.

Secret gave it some more thought. "I agree."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hades has his own plan, Batman finally is realizing he was a prick, Percy had some fun, we are getting close to the ending. Only five more chapters or so.
> 
> Harm was supposed to be this scary, unbeatable villain for halloween horror episode, but I have other plans for him. It's not the last time you see him mind you, so don't worry. But this is all setting up the stage for the sequel, so you must be patient.


	21. Cold Hearts and heated rage

**Mount Justice  
November 11, 16:05**

Wally entered the cave just as Zeta Tubes went off-line. He didn't find anyone in the kitchen, but once he entered the lounge the lights suddenly came up and he was greeted by a birthday party.

"Guys! You didn't have to!" He then gave one look at the buffet. "On second thought, who am I to refuse such magnificent things." This earned a round of chuckle from everyone. Then, M'gann and Percy brought four birthday cakes. Two of them were blue.

"We had a little bit of an argument over who is to bake you a cake, so we ended up both baking some and you will be the judge." M'gann explained.

"Yeah. Apparently, Martians does not understand the superiority of blue food over all other food in existence. Alas, the time has come to show, that any meal in color of sky, sea and saphire is far better than normal-colored food." Percy sounded as if he was speaking straight from his heart. Wally mostly ignored the speech, instead eyeing the four cakes, each with two candles on them. There was a single '1' and '6' four times over.

"Guys. I am not turning sixty-four the last time I checked." This earned another round of chuckles. even Conner actually smiled at this one. Wally then quickly blew off all the candles.

"What was your birthday wish?" Robin asked.

"Dude. You can't just ask that." Percy scolded the boy wonder.

Artemis gave both of them a wide grin and walked over to Wally. "I think I can guess." She then pulled him into a passionate kiss, much to the surprise of everyone gathered. Once they broke away, the expression of utter bliss on Wally's face suggested that it was exactly what he wished for. After all what was better than getting a kiss from his girlfriend. The party continued for some time until suddenly a holo-screen featuring Captain Atom appeared.

"Team meeting in mission room in ten minutes. Be sure to put your winter outfit."

* * *

Once everyone gathered, Captain Atom displayed a satellite image of flying fortress spitting snow all around.

"Five of such machines are flying over the whole country right now, paralyzing the whole infrastructure. The league will require all the help we can get to bring them down. Neptune, Artemis. You will help Black Canary, Wonder Woman and Green Arrow take down the Ice Fortress One. Superboy, Wolf. You two will go to help Superman with Ice Fortress Two. Aqualad, Huntress and Miss Martian will help at Ice Fortress Three. Aquaman and Martian Manhunter will meet you there. Tempest, Zatanna. You are to support Captain Marvel and Red Tornado at Ice Fortress Four. Robin and Aquagirl will meet Batman, me and Flash at Ice Fortress Five."

There was only one problem. Wally walked from the line and stood in front of the screen. "Uh... Sir? I think you forgot about someone..."

"Negative. A young girl in Seattle desperately needs heart transplant. They found a donor in Boston, but with all conventional ways of transportation gone, you are needed to move it. Air traffic is impossible with the snow."

"What about Zeta Tubes?"

"Hey, KF. The tubes are down, remember?" Robin apologetically reminded.

Zoe stepped out of the line too. "Actually, I have a faster solution." This earned a questioning look from the rest of them. She proceeded to explain. "Moon Chariot is not impeded by weather or anything really. It is the physical manifestation of the idea of moon. I can get the heart there in less than half an hour."

Wally wanted to happily take her place and see some action, but then his ring started to pain him and an ominous voice spoke in his mind. ' ** _You will take this assignment. Only you will be late. I do not care what you punk do, but the heart must not reach the girl. And don't get caught.'_** Of course his 'benefactor' had to ruin his birthday even more. He sighted.

"No. It would be too dangerous. You would be moving above Mach 10. And we don't know how this... whatever it is supposed to be... will affect the heart. I for once felt enough 'godly poisoning' in my life."

"Kid Flash is right. I will not risk it."

"Guess I will not need stealth suit for this one." With sad expression he pressed the emblem on his chest and outfit turned yellow and red.

* * *

Wally was speeding through empty road a bit under Mach 1. He was deep in thoughts and didn't want to accidentally hit something. At this speed any of such collisions could cost him his life, or at least earn him a month in hospital. The ring on his finger was slightly pulsing under his glove, sending unpleasant warm through his body. It served as a constant reminder of the demand that his 'benefactor' placed on him. Handling over some information here and there was not that harmful. It was still dangerous, but he always reminded himself that Artemis life was at stake. But now it was different. If he carried out the order, an innocent young girl would die. He would practically kill her. But if he didn't, the girl that meant the world for him would die. And even worse. She would die a traitor. While Artemis was unaware that he made a deal in order to protect her, he knew exactly what she did. To wake him from a coma, she agreed to serve Ares. Should she die from the necklace that connected her to him, it would be over. They would deem her a traitor from the beginning.

_I am doomed. I acted rashly and landed ears deep into some muddy situation. Right now I have only one choice. Either I kill the girl, or sentence Artemis to death. Why does life hate me so much..._

Wally was so focused on his inner dialogue that he almost missed a hulking brute throwing policemen around like a ragdolls. Almost being the key word. "That was Vandal Savage." Wally took a sharp turn and sped back at the immortal caveman. "I need to save this innocent guards."

"Ah. My target is here." Savage threw the officer he was holding into his car, instantly knocking the poor man unconscious.

Wally accelerated, breaking the sound barrier and punched the villain square in the chest, only for him to not even budge. Wally didn't stop there. He continued to speed past him and took another sharp turn. With all the momentum he could gather, he repeated the punch, but this time Vandal reciprocated. The longer hands gave him incredible advantage as he managed to catch speedster before he connected. The speed, reflexes or coordination required for such feat were beyond comprehension. Wally didn't give up. He started to furiously kick him several times over while hanging by the neck. Once he managed to kick Vandal in the nose, he let go and with a THUMP! Kid Flash fell on the ground. Luckily, he shifted so that the heart was intact. trying to change approach, Wally started to run around the hulking brute, trying to attack from various different angles. He made sure not to follow any pattern so it was impossible to know where he will strike next.

What he didn't expect, was that Vandal would just jump at random point in the circle he created. At this point, Wally was too surprised to dodge and his body slammed into the caveman. To his credit, Savage was actually pushed back this time.

"Funny. I actually felt this one." He then cracked his knuckles and started to walk to dazed speedster. "Let's see how much can you feel."

Wally looked around. The guards got away already. Checking his timer, he noticed that this fight wasted 12 minutes of his time already. _Maybe that's a good thing. This way I will have an excuse and if I manage to bring Vandal Savage to justice my actions might be justified._ The backpack with the heart started to weight him even more. He then gave one more look at the villain. _Who am I kidding. I can't do this. And there are more pressing matters._ He dashed forward. Vandal prepared to block another hit, but Wally swiveled around him and started to run away. He was already too far to see Vandal smiling. The immortal caveman pulled a communication device and pressed a button.

"Everything's going according to plan."

* * *

At Ice Fortress One, Percy and Diana slashed trough more and more of the ice cannons. More and more machines kept popping out, but it didn't faze them. Neptune had a hurricane around himself, tearing the fortress apart piece by piece. Still, the building was massive and by himself it would take him hours. Luckily, Wonder Woman was with him. She exploited the openings and cut the unprotected cables with her sword. They worked together well, but that's exactly what one would expect after months of sparring with one another. The only person Percy had better synergy with was Zoe.

On the other side, Artemis and Green Arrow stood back to back, firing exploding arrows at any cannon that popped out.

"Having fun?" Oliver smirked.

"You bet!" Artemis retorted as she leaped high in the air and fired several arrows at once, which detonated series of cannons and caused huge chain explosion, bringing one of the snow spatters off-line. Green Arrow watched this content of what his new protegee was capable of. Next to him, Black Canary sent a wave of sonic scream that cleared them a path to the next section. A large explosion on the other side suggested that Neptune and Wonder Woman were doing great. They were about to move out through the way when suddenly entire structure started to shake. Several explosions in random places quickly followed.

"Wonder Woman. What the hell is going on on your side _?"_ Green Arrow screamed into his communicator

"Neptune decided to try something. It looks like it's working. Evacuate immediately. We will meet you at the extraction point."

The three heroes found it surprising that even with the shaking, they did not have any trouble with walking straight. Once they got to the extraction point, Wonder Woman and Neptune were already there. He was holding his trident tightly with other hand extended toward the ground. Their jet was standing there. The trap door started to open when a giant explosion threw them all back. The five heroes could only watch as their only way out slid down, falling off the floating fortress.

"What now?" Artemis asked. The storm around them was slowly getting more clear, but it would still be impossible for any normal aircraft to approach them. And if the weather did clear out up here, it would mean they would only have few seconds before this whole thing would crash down.

"I can get you down, but I can lift only two people." Wonder Woman suggested.

"Canary and Artemis will go first. I will stay and protect Neptune while he does... whatever you are doing man."

"It's called tremorkinesis, control over earthquake." Judging by his voice, this prolonged earthquake of such magnitude was slowly starting to give him a hard time.

Dinah wanted to protest, but Diana already lifted her and Artemis off the ground and started floating down. They slowly descanted until clouds completely shrouded them from the view.

"How you holding?"

"Could be better. If I stop now, I fear I will not be able to start again." Percy summarized. Suddenly, there was a huge explosion in the center and whole building started to fall down. "We need to jump. It's _snow_ or never."

Green Arrow chuckled. "Puns in the face of death? I admit. You got style."

"I _aim_ to please." Neptune made a mock bow.

"I still don't see our ride anywhere."

"Then we must hope she will catch us or I learn how to fly in next less-than-a-minute." Neptune picked Green Arrow bridal style and jumped off the Fortress, ignoring how the superhero screamed like a little girl. In the air, Percy focused on creating a hurricane around himself. The wind picked up and everywhere around them violent air currents tore apart any part of the falling structure. This indeed slowed his descent, but they were still falling.

"Maybe parachute would be a better idea!" Oliver screamed.

"If you have a parachute arrow, it would be nice to use it now. I didn't plan on falling from the sky today. That usually only happens at Thursday."

"Not that something, but it is Thursday."

"Oh! Forgive me that I have more important things to do. For example _not ending as Paneptune."_

"Now you are just being sassy."

"I am Persassy, thank you very much."

The earth started to get closer and closer. In panic, Percy desperately looked around. There was a river nearby! He reached toward the water while still holding onto the hurricane (which was not as easy as one may think). The whole river rose from it's bed and formed a slide for them to safely travel. Percy was obviously not wet once they walked out, but Green Arrow started to almost literary turn into an icicle.

"Never. Doing that." He pointed up in the air in unspecified direction. "Again!"

Artemis and Black Canary walked next to them. The older woman spoke. "Now as a responsible adult I should give a speech about how reckless this was, but it was also pretty funny to watch. Did you really need this triple circle and a double loop?"

"Hey. If you are falling from the sky into a water slide you created, you either do it with style or don't do it at all." Percy grinned behind the mask.

"Whatever. Can we now go. Preferably to a place where I can get a hot chocolate and warm clothes." Green Arrow spoke as his teeth chattered.

* * *

Wally was zooming at the speed of sound to get back the time he sacrificed to fight vandal savage. He would still be just in time... that is if he was really gonna do it. If he did, then Artemis would die. He could not let his girlfriend be killed because of his actions. But that would mean killing a sick girl who needed a heart transplant. She counted on him too. There was no real escape. Maybe if he didn't deliver the heart himself, instead faking that he was too worn out and asked someone else to do it? Or if he just deliver another heart. _Yeah. Where will I find another heart?_

Suddenly, his comm beeped. " _Wally. It's Artemis. We cleared our assignment. I am on my way to Seattle. We will get a chance to celebrate your birthday some more. Just the two of us."_ He smiled at that. Birthday date? Great. But it won't matter. At best, she will be there to tell him it wasn't his fault and he did his best. At worst, he would get to see her one last time before she died. No. That would not happen. He will figure something out.

The city appeared on the horizon. He was closing in. Only few more minutes to come up with some plan or make a decision. He checked his timer. He still had sixteen minutes left. He would make it in four on a bad day. Wally sighted. _It shouldn't even be a choice. I will not be able to live myself either way. At least that way someone will..._

* * *

Doctor Cross waited outside the hospital and checked his watch once more. There was no sight of Kid Flash with the delivery. He sighted. His breath was frozen and formed a mist. With resignation he walked inside. About two minutes later the delivery arrived. Kid Flash looked around, but he couldn't find a doctor. A man, wearing coat and a surgical cap walked outside.

"Please tell me I made it!" The speedster managed to say between panting heavily and handing over the heart.

"I am sorry. The girl died eight minutes ago. I will take the heart. There are others waiting." With that, the doctor walked away. Wally fell on his knees.

 _Eight minutes. It means if I did hurry, if I didn't stall or try and fight savage so long, the girl would live. I killed_ _her..._ He moaned. Barely standing, he walked inside and sat on the nearest chair. Before he realized it, a swarm of doctors surrounded him.

"Kid Flash! You've got the heart? The queen is waiting!" Head surgeon urged him

"The girl died and now the heart is going to the queen?" He asked confused.

"The girl _is_ the queen. Queen Perdita of Vlatava. She is alive for now, but the clock is ticking." This sent a bolt of electricity through Wally's body. He quickly looked around and noticed the fake doctor to whom he handled the heart going down the elevator.

"I will deal with it. Wait here." He then sped down the stairs to the car park below, leaving doctors in a state of confusion.

When he got down, he saw the man about to enter the car. He pooled all his strength into accelerating and zoomed by, grabbing the backpack and going back to the stairs. Suddenly, a wave of nausea hit him and he slipped. Wally's head started to feel like someone used his brain for kickboxing training. He tried to crawl to the backpack, but the fake doctor was faster. Kid Flash looked around to see count Vertigo behind him.

"I could have guessed. Vertigo." A sharp pain went through his right tight. A sword was plunged into it.

"It's count Vertigo you peasant." The villain was now standing in front of him. One hand was on his temple, still holding onto the cane part while in his other was bared sword.

"Aren't you supposed to be in Belle Reve? After how you were defeated with the rest of 'Injustice League'. It must've been humiliating. Getting your ass kicked so hard by one guy with a trident." Wally taunted him. The clock was ticking and if he didn't figure something out, the queen would die and whole country would end up under the rule of a super villain.

"It's called diplomatic immunity."

Suddenly, Wally swiped his legs, and knocked the count off balance. Ignoring the pierce wound on his tight, he run to Vertigo's henchman and took the backpack. Both handles were torn, but he held to it close. The pain was starting to get to him, but he ignored it and jumped over several cars. Last second he changed direction from going for the stairs as a wave or nauseating vibrations crashed there. In split second he run toward the car exit and escaped the chase. Going around, he crashed through the front window, making sure that the backpack was not damaged. The surgeons were startled as he handled them the pack. Doctor Cross urged them to hurry. Seeing that everything was going okay, Wally collapsed.

* * *

He was awoken by the sound of an heart monitor beeping steadily next to him. In the background the TV was on.

_"...ice League managed to destroy all five of Ice Fortresses. While their effects might linger for a few days, the country is slowly returning to normal. Thank you, Justice League."_

_"In other news, Queen Perdita of Vlatava died today on the operation table. After hours long surgery, the medical team responsible for her heart transplant was ultimately unable to save her life. The next in line for a succession is her uncle, Count Verner Vertigo, but some of the country officials question this. The main base for concerns is his involvement with so-called 'Injustice League', responsible for trying to hold the world hostage. Some of the neighboring countries outright refuse to acknowledge him as the ruler, with Markovia threatening to cut all diplomatic and trade relations should he be crowned king."_

Suddenly, someone turned the TV off. Count Vertigo walked inside the room. He pulled himself a chair and sat next to Kid Flash's bed.

"So all your efforts, all this work, this _sacrifice_... And still for nothing." He placed too much accent on the word sacrifice for Wally not to notice.

 _He was in league with Ares. Figures since they were both in the Injustice League. Eh._ He focused, not letting his mind wander off too much. "It must sting Vertigo. Knowing that you now owe a debt to Vandal Savage and Five Ice villains, all for nothing. Your niece would die either way."

"It's king Vertigo now, you lowly, irritating peasant. And maybe yes, maybe no. If I didn't get them to slow you down, they might have yet helped her. But alas."

"And now that you are a king, nobody can trial you for murder."

"It's called _Regicide._ " He smiled at kid Flash, but the young hero grinned widely in response. He then pulled the partition curtain aside to reveal Queen Perdita, alive and healthy, with four bodyguards. She had a tape recorder in hand.

" _It's called Regicide."_ She played the tape, proving that their whole talk was recorded.

"You... You..." The villain could not find the words foul enough to express his rage. Instead, he pulled the sword from his cane and lunged at the queen. He was mid-air when suddenly his face met with something metal. He fell down and the sword-cane rolled away. wally was now holding an IV stand like a baseball bat. Two of the guards grabbed the count and restrained him.

"Count Verner Vertigo. For attempted Regicide and treason against your country, I hearby revoke your diplomatic immunity and place you under arrest. Take him away." Queen Perdita spoke with royal-like authority.

"Well played, Child. Well played. Cherrish this small victory, but remember. One battle does not end the war." He sounded really pissed. Bodyguards pushed him when he tried to resist. "Don't touch me peasants!"

Once the criminal was escorted, she smiled. "Thank you. I owe you my life. And my country owes you their freedom."

Wally stood from his bed and picked the sword-cane from the ground. He wanted to hand it to her, but she refused. "This sword never belonged to my uncle. It's a family heirloom of royal house of Vlatava. I would be honored if you kept it. As a _Souvenir_ perhaps?" She smiled brightly.

He pondered it for a second, but Wally shook his head. "Thank you, your majesty, but I think I know a better souvenir."

She still didn't take it from him. "Take it anyway. I will be content knowing it's in safe hands." Her voice was now a bit more mysterious, but it might have also been the accent. He just shrugged and said his goodbye.

* * *

Once he walked out of the Hospital, he was greeted by Artemis, still in her superhero getup. "Oh Wally. I am so sorry. I heard what happened." She then noticed the cane he carried and the backpack. "Oh. I see you still got a souvenirs." She also noted he was smiling. "You seem rather... lighthearted."

"Well, considering that queen lives, count Vertigo is now in prison and I practically single-handedly saved the whole country from tyranny of a super-villain, I think I am entitled to be happy, right?"

She embraced him. "Certainly. Now my superhero maybe would like to change into something nicer. I believe we were supposed to celebrate your birthday." She was now grinning widely.

His ring was itching him, but he decided to ignore it for now. "Yeah. I think I would like it." Deep down, he was starting to get worried. Ares struck him as someone who would not take disobeying him lightly. The fact that his vengeance was not yet present only unnerved him more. But for now he decided not to worry.

They walked through the town, now in civilian clothes. He sent the cane and backpack back to his home through Zeta Tube. It was nice. Just the two of them, walking through Seattle. They entered a park, now empty as it was already pretty late. With all the snow reflecting the streetlamp lights it was lovely. The atmosphere was incredible. The two of them held hands tightly as they walked side by side, completely silent, just enjoying each others company.

"You know..." Artemis started. "I think I could live in this city one day. It's so beautiful here." She looked around.

"Well, the crime rate is almost 90% higher than national average, so they could definitely use a superhero..." Wally blurted and earned himself a jab in the stomach. Artemis did have a bone-y elbows.

"Not like that you doof. I mean I won't be a superhero forever. And neither will you." She pointed finger at his chest. "With the brains of yours I see a great career for you in the science world."

"I always saw myself more as a stand-up comedian." He joked.

"Yeah. You would starve the first year into the job. Or more like first month."

"I don't know. I never really thought about any life besides... that all." He spoke.

"Seriously? No plans for life? You know that being a superhero does not pay the bills."

"I figured, but it seemed so... distant. Now suddenly my dad is talking about getting a driving license and you are asking about my future job. I am the type of guy who does not plan what he will do in the evening. It's a miracle I actually think through where I take you for dates." He joked.

"Yeah. Lucky..." She started, but suddenly the necklace around her flew up and the string suddenly shortened. She began to choke as the air could not pass. The pain made her fall on the ground. She tried to pull it off, but it wouldn't leave. Panicked, Wally picked her bridal-style and began to run. He wanted to go to the hospital, but they would not help her. No human method would work. He needed... someone. Whether it was alien technology or even straight up magic from deepest part of hell or Hades or pink dimension of fluffy unicorns of doom, he had to save her. He went through the list of all the sorcerers he heard Flash talk about. There was Zatarra, but she was out of the picture. It would raise a lot of questions. There was Doctor Fate, but he wouldn't even need to ask questions. Maybe Percy could help him... He shuddered, remembering last time the demigod fought the god of war. From what he heard, the Bayou is still pretty much treated as a ecological disaster. The earthquake, hurricane, tsunami. No that would not work. Artemis was slowly losing consciousness. He could almost see the life escaping her. He realized he was still running, so he stopped on the nearest rooftop. He grabbed the necklace and pulled. It allowed her to take one breath, but then it only latched back and tightened even more. He got maybe two minutes before she died.

" _ **May this serve you as a lesson. You do not disobey my orders. Any orders. I tell you to jump, and you will not ask me how high. You will just jump."**_ Suddenly, his ring started to almost burn him. He felt an excruciating pain on his right shoulder. Pulling down the shirt, he saw that there was a bloody symbol of mars there. It looked like someone cut him with a knife. " _ **You are both mine. Consider yourself lucky that I still have some need for the two of you**_ " Wally noticed that Artemis' necklace finally loosened a bit and allowed her some breathing space. Suddenly, there was flash of light and in front of them stood Ares in all his glory. His overall posture was more bulky now, but otherwise he was unchanged. Under his helmet the flames still hid his features and the golden sword strapped to his belt was all the same, but there was this aura of power around him, greater than any before.

"No! You said he would not know. I promised you anything, but he was not supposed to know!" Artemis panicked and Wally pulled her closed.

" **He knew from the beginning. He made a deal to protect you, but he failed to uphold it. Now you will both help me. Or there will be much more severe consequences. You are both mine. Should either of you die, your soul and body will be mine to use. However. I. please."** He made sure to accent each part of the last sentence.

"What? You knew?" She was confused. Wally pulled her closer and showed her a ring on his finger.

"I did. But I couldn't let you just sacrifice your life for me. I had to do something. I had to protect you." he spoke soothingly. Trying to calm her down. She was still in shock from almost dying and this situation was not helping her at all.

"But... You don't understand. You have no idea who I am."

"You are a good person and you are my whole world. I won't loose you." He smiled and hugged her tightly, like he was trying to protect her from the bad world around them.

" **Touching. I would gag if I had a stomach. But sadly a certain demigod pierced it. If Aphrodite was here she would've probably made me leave you alone. But I have other plans for you."** He opened his clawed hand to reveal four vials. " **When I give you a signal, you will splash the main punk and his girly with the content of this. Is that clear?"** He threatened.

"What is this stuff?" Wally asked. Suddenly, the fresh wound on his shoulder pained and he saw it all open again. Speedforce long since closed it before, but now it opened. Artemis let out a scream next to him and he noticed similar wound in the middle of her arm where she usually wore an armband while in superhero suit. Clever, easy to hide and still painful. For a looser god, he was quite creative in his torture.

" **I said no questioning my orders. You will do as I say or you will beg me to end your miserable existence faster. _"_** He spoke with rage in his voice. Each of them obediently took two vials. He then disappeared in another flash of light.

"I guess I have some explaining to do..." Wally started, but Artemis interrupted him, pulling him into a kiss.

"That was THE most romantic thing anyone ever did for me." She said after breaking apart. Then, she smacked him in the head several times. "It is also the most stupid, irresponsible, rush, immature, Wally thing to do. Have you thought about the consequences?" She kept smacking him until he finally caught her wrist.

"Ouch. Enough! I get it. I also remember you did the same thing to save my life, so you are in no position to judge." This finally calmed her.

"Okay. You got me there." There was a moment of awkward silence as they just sat on the rooftop. Finally, Artemis spoke. "So what now?"

"I guess we pretend nothing of this ever happened, help him with what he wants and then move on. Whatever his final plan is, I am certain Percy, Zoe and the league will stop him..."

"I hope so. But what..." She didn't finish as he pulled her closer, hugging her tightly.

"I don't know. I wish I knew, but I don't have the answer. I don't even know if this is magic or science. Where went the times when the only crime to stop was a plain bank robbery or thief steeling a purse of an elderly lady?"

"I have no idea. They probably retired once they heard of such a great duo as us." She gave out a weak laugh.

* * *

**Metropolis**   
**November 12, 23:33**

Reverse Flash walked into a very secure room. There, Doomsday was locked in a stasis field. A twenty-ninth century technology. It was attuned to his cells so others could safely enter it with no worries outside of slight migraine.

"Are all the modifications ready?" He asked

"Not yet sir." the nearest scientist answered. "We have a bit of trouble with adjusting the control collar with no way of testing it. The micro-pauses in acting of Stasis field do allow us to test his brain activity, but without field testing, we have no way of being sure."

"Then better be sure, because should it be free before final calibrations, no one is living through. It will make sure of it." He not so much threatened as stated.

* * *

**Qurac**   
**November 13, 06:16**

A large group of armored vehicles crossed the border with Bialya, followed by large amount of tanks and mobile artillery. People living nearby were used to seeing small skirmished between patrols, but this was something entirely different. A full-scale invasion. And with the power like never seen before here. Squadrons of soldiers, some in military outfits, others in more civilian clothes or only partial uniforms, all entering foreign country armed to teeth. They were ready to kill anyone who stood in their way. Blood lust in their eyes was almost unnatural. The Bialyan army did not stay idle while Qurac invaded. In almost every place on the border, the shots could be heard. The total war has begun.

Back at the capital of Qurac, Dhabar, the press conference was held. On the podium stood Noor Harjavti, the daughter of president Rumaan Harjavti.

"Qurac was weak. For years, Bialya threatened us and raided our borders. We had to live in fear. My father was a good leader, but he was weak one too. He believed that other powers would keep us safe. That the world would keep a dictator like Queen Bee in peace. But that has to end. We must raise and solve our problems by ourself. This morning, my father was removed from his position as the president of Qurac and I took his place. Under my leadership, Qurac will raise. We will no longer need to live in fear of Bialya or Queen Bee. My first decision as ruling leader of our great country, I declared war on the enemy that lived freely to plot. No more I say! With the fall of despot, we shall free her people and unite the two halves. Qurac and Bialya might have once been one country, but if the union is to happen, it will not be under her tyrannic rule." The gathered crows cheered. There was a faint glimmer in their eyes. A faint red light.

* * *

**Western Mongolia  
November 13, 07:33**

"What is the meaning of this! How dare you! That puppet of yours just invaded my country!" Queen Bee was raging on the tele-screen at Ares, who stood calmly in the middle of large room. "And you did something to her soldiers... I can't... I am losing!" She tried to mask her panic with rage, but most of the members saw through it.

" **I don't care. Your plan clearly does not work fast enough. You want to scheme and play, but it does not work. A bunch of kids is all it takes to foil your plans. From now on, we will do things my way. We will start a new world war. I will make sure that it will last long enough for them to develop interstellar travel. Then, Earth will rise as an intergalactic dominion. And I will be the only god the galaxy knows. Then, nobody will stop me!"**

Vandal was sitting in the back. He listened to the speech of his once patron. In truth, he was powerless to oppose him. The failsafe built in the new body was destroyed during the transformation. Helmet swallowed all safety measures. Ares was now a god inhibiting the most powerful mortal body that was found. One that would never rebel against him.

"You are okay with this Savage?" Queen Bee screamed.

"I am. For now we will follow this plan." He mulled over the idea of calling his partner for help, but for the first time, it might not be enough. Ares was now more powerful than Superman on Kobra-venom.

" **Good. Let's get this party started."**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We are entering the endgame now folks.


	22. Endgame: War

**Mount Justice  
November 14, 10:36**

The whole team was watching the news with worry. They knew what this meant. By declaring the war, Qurac was now alone in the war. Because of this act of aggression, the UN issued a series of embargo and sanctions on the country. All the humanitarian support went to Bialya, whose ambassador was quick to ensure they were all seen as a victims of warmongering neighbor. It was barely 24 hours and there were already countless civilian casualties. It was like a whole nation was suddenly under mind control.

On the screen next to the newsfeed was an open channel with Captain Atom. He was standing in private room of the Justice League in UN headquarter. "We are facing a global crisis here. Qurac has some strong support in UN. Many see their preventive attack as just. At the same time, Bialya is pushing for intervention of international peacekeeping forces. The tensions are high and it will only get worse. Justice League was banned from entering territory of either country. We can't even come near the embassies."

"Actions of Noor Harjavti are even stranger when you consider that three days ago, she was a firm supporter of her father and his policy of peace. We suspect this was planned by Queen Bee from the beginning."

"Provoke the attack so that the world would support her and then annex the other part. Miss President is talking about one nation, playing into her Cassus Belli." Aqualad spoke, explaining to those not into politics. _*khe* Percy *Khe*_

"Exactly. We need you to get to Dhabar and investigate. We need to know that this is not some sophisticated scheme. Villains are getting more crafty as of lately. And please. Be careful. War is not like your day-to-day crime fighting. It's anything but what they show in those movies. If you are caught, the League will have no choice but to disown you. You will be on your own there. If someone wants to back out, now is the only time."

Nobody moved an inch. They mulled the idea over in their head. this was going to be more dangerous than anything before. Everyone but Percy. "I am going."

"Me too." Zoe joined him. The others were about to walk to them, but Percy made a hand gesture and stopped them.

"Before you make rush decisions, let me tell you some things. War is not black and white like what you usually do. There are good people on both sides, doing their best for what they consider the 'just cause'. This includes killing. If we go we are almost sure to encounter death. Like captain said, it's anything but glorious images in movies. Nobody can guarantee that everyone will make it back. Just because we are supposed to be doing only infiltration, does not mean it will be any less dangerous. We will be intruders on foreign soil. Enemy which they will kill on sight. Age, parentage, intentions, love... this things does not matter. The only thing that had value are skill, experience and willpower." Names of his friends that died in the wars back in his worlds flashed in his mind. Silena, Beckendorf, Luke, Bianca, Damasen, Castor, Bob... He had a tear in his eye, but he held his posture. "It's kill or be killed. Sometimes, sacrifice is unavoidable if you want to survive. I advice you to stay here. Me and Zoe will do it. Alone. Smaller team will have easier time anyway."

Others looked stunned. The weight of his words were still ringing in their ears. They thought they were fully ready, but now they started to doubt. Could they survive? What would happen if one of them died? Would they really be ready to kill someone to save another life? The saw the subtle change in Percy's posture when he spoke. He was no longer happy or careless like usual. The most visible change were his eyes. The spark that was always there was now dimmed. He looked... tired. Like this old people in veterans' houses.

"Nobody will fault you if you back away." Zoe said in much more calm voice. She knew that they still held this passion of youth. She did not want any of them to loose it.

Captain Atom watched this. He took a close look at Percy and he noticed the same things that the Team saw, but also something visible only for those who experienced it themselves. Buried deep underneath everything, there was this speck of jealousy. Jealousy of those who did not have to experience this. But in his case, this feeling was genuine. He was happy for them. That they did not need to share his experience. "They stand correct. Two people team will suffice. Rest of you will have another mission. I just received a report about off-the-grid Cadmus facility in metropolis. With all the mess going on out there, you are to investigate." In truth, he pulled a file from a pile of unresolved cases. It looked fairly simple. They were more than ready to handle it.

"Understood." Aqualad saluted. He then turned to Percy. "Good luck on your mission." He gave another salute, but this time Atlantean one. Percy reciprocated.

"You too. Be careful. I wouldn't want to hear that I missed all the fun."

* * *

**Qurac  
Twelve hours later**

"This is definitely not fun!" Neptune screamed. Next to him, Zoe was firing arrows faster than a machinegun with precision of well-calibrated sniper rifle. They were surrounded from all sides by undead soldiers armed with Celestial bronze weapon. "When the villager talked about soldiers out of time, I expected some super advanced battle suits. Maybe a mech or too. Not... this." He discharged another eldritch blast from his trident, hitting the several of British Colonial Forces armed with muskets. Celestial Bronze, or whatever it was in their guns, hurt quite a bit. He had this dimmed version of the Curse of Styx, but even it could only hold so much. After around seventieth stray bulled he actually started to bleed. And the armies seemed endless. And they marched relentlessly, trying to kill the two heroes.

Percy could recognize this soldiers anyway. They were Ares personal army. The fallen who lost the battle and had to pay their debt to the god of war. "At least now it's clear who is behind this. The lord punk Mc'Punkenson himself." He joked while at the same time piercing two soldiers in traditional Arabic outfits, armed with swords. He then used the extra weight to swing his trident with more power and crush several more 'warriors of bones'. Another strike to bring down more of them who got close. He and Zoe found shelter on top of small rock formation. It was almost like a natural defense tower. The small drillhole in the middle provided cover behind which they could hide from bullets. He took onto himself taking any soldiers who climbed up to them while Zoe picked the most dangerous groups with explosive arrows.

They spotted the army while traveling high over the desert. It was unclear why Ares decided to involve himself into the war directly, but it might have had something to do with the fact that Khandaq joined Queen Bee in defensive war. It was like a civil war between villains. And it was not pretty. The pair of heroes decided that they need to stop the army from reaching the front or it would be a bloodbath. Mortal weapons are useless against 'summons of Ares' as Zoe put it. They landed on the desert in front of the army. Percy tried to create a crack that would stop them, but before he managed to split it wide enough, the soldiers opened fire. There were many warriors. Some as old as Anceint Egypt and ending on Second World War uniforms. This was also the biggest collection of Celestial Bronze weapons ever seen.

Right now, Percy fired several icicles at skeletons who were about to cut Zoe from behind. "That's all nice, but little more effort could actually be nice." She snarled while at the same time notching four arrows with orange tips and firing them all up. The bombardment created multiple holes on the battlefield. "You know, like an earthquake or a tsunami. Or at least a hurricane." She was not looking at him, but Percy could easily tell that she was frowning.

"I can't. I will need all the power I can get if Ares shows up." He did swipe a waterwhip. Hydrokinesis was the only power that did not tax him in any way if he used it in short bursts like this one. "But we can't just sit here. We can't just fight the whole army alone. We need the justice League."

"They can't help. UN will not allow it."

Percy was angry. Politics and stupid leaders yet again. Zeus was bad when he closed Olympus in panic. But now the whole world was at stake. If could, he would personally go there and drag the secretary General here to show him what they are up against, but he could not. Instead, with one hand he pulled his smartphone and started recording this fight. After about two minutes of fighting skeletal warriors, he stopped the feed. He handed it to Zoe. "Someone is stopping all transmissions. You must get it to the Justice League. Or better yet, to the UN. You are representative of Themyscira. We need to stop Ares before he does more permanent damage."

"And leave you here to have all the fun?" She protested.

"Don't worry. I can manage it here for some time. Now go get some help. May the tides be with you." He joked.

"You and your movies. Read a book once in a while." She chuckled before summoning her Moon Chariot. In seconds, she was gone.

"Now... Let's hope she convinces them fast." He took one more look at the army in front of him. "Looks like now I just need to hold the ground. There goes my plan of saving strength."

He lunged from his pillar right into the middle of approaching army, trident ready. Hurricane formed around him, tearing apart some of the closer warriors. He himself was like a hurricane, walking and slashing or piercing skeletons. A wide swipe there, a lunge there, and finally a blast of eldritch energy in front. The piles of bones and swords were everywhere. He was a demon, jumping from place to place and slaughtering the army. Trident in his hand felt like just an extension of his arm. Percy was now in full-out battle mode. His senses sharpened and his mind accelerated. The whole world felt as if slowed down. The warriors were moving sluggishly when he cut them. A series of bullets came at him, but he blocked it with his trident, only to then fire an icicle at the direction. The projectile pierced the skull of undead soldier and sent his soul back to the underworld. But the armies seemed to have no end. Percy couldn't give up now. He traveled the Labyrinth. He survived Battle of Olympus. He escaped Tartarus. He won against the Giants. And now he will beat the hell out of Ares once he shows up.

Slowly, he made his way through the army. Finally, another large rock formation was closing by. He decided to make his stand there. Desert sun and dry air slowly tired him. His mask was yet again damaged badly, no longer able to filter air. It might have as well saved his eyes, but he had to ditch it. Broken googles were too much of a hindrance so he put it away. Now his eyes were covered by his old domino mask, just to hide his identity from general public. It's not like almost every villain knew his identity anyway, right? By the rock, he finally had some shadow to at least shield him from the sun. He was fighting like wild beast, tearing apart anyone who got close. Finally, to his surprise, the attack halted. Soldiers stood still, saluting. He used the opportunity to down a vial of ambrosia. Meanwhile, in the further part of the countless legions, he notices a split. It was like the sea parting in front of him. He also noticed the horned helmet in the middle of this. _Great. Now he decided to show up._

"So I see that the the god of Dumb himself finally made his appearance. Did your have a problem with finding a matching sock or maybe armor without a gaping hole in the stomach." Demigod taunted.

" **You think this is funny, punk? You have no idea what kind of power I now hold. Previously, my host was fighting against me, trying to run away. He was also weak. But now? Now I have more permanent, more stable, more... obedient body. I am now even more powerful than your father!"** Ares boasted while the soldiers backed away to give the two more space.

"Yeah. But you are also dumber, uglier, and generally less likable. Oh! And you stink!" Percy held his trident ready. He was constantly in battle mode, taking in all the information from around him. The air, the sand, which way the wind blew, temperature, angle of sunlight, how far from the rock he stands, where the shadow ends. Everything that would help him with the plan.

" **Silence you mortal! I will make you watch how I destroy everyone you ever cared about. I will..."**

"Stop talking? I already heard this speech." Percy taunted the god of war a bit more.

" **You insolent...!"** Ares lunged at the demigod. He was in the middle of a jump when Percy shifted his trident slighly so that the light reflected from the middle prong and hit him in the eyes, blinding him for a second. Hero used this opportunity to deliver one rather painful blow at Ares, using his weapon like a baseball bat. God of war was flung away a bit. His armor now had a dent in it, on the chest. Percy then created a minuscule hurricane that caused sand and dust to rise up and obscure the vision. Taking advantage of the confusion it created, he plunged his trident into the rock behind him, causing it to split in two. A giant geyser of salt water erupted. Percy immediately wrapped it under his control and pushed it at Ares, who was still standing there, now with his back straight. Hundreds of gallons of pressurized water slammed into the god of war. The pressure would be enough to slash through titanium block.

Percy was sure that this would weaken Ares or at least hurt him a bit, but to his surprise suddenly two beams of fiery red energy emerged from under Ares' helm. He levitated up in the air and vaporized the beam of water all the way to the source, melting some of the rocks and sealing the crack. " **I told you insolent shit that I am now unbeatable. Not even your League will stop me in time. Partially because I have other things to keep them busy. I am like ten supermen."**

The weight of his words hit Percy like a speeding truck. Ares was not possessing a human, but instead he took a kryptonian. Or some other strong alien. Demigod was on par with this alien race, but that still made the god of war ten times stronger than him. _Why can't I just go back to fighting normal monsters. At least they didn't boast that much._ He was scared. Percy felt fear. He would not win alone. "So I just need to stall you long enough for the League to deal with your 'distraction' and then come beat your ass?" He taunted, but Ares let out a chuckle.

" **You don't get it, eh? By the time league manages to stop the chaos I caused, I will take control over the greatest military power. And in my name, one country will conquer all earth. Then, Earth will rule the galaxy. This and others. Once I become the living deity of the only empire in the universe, I will be omnipotent!"** Ares unknowingly presented his plan to Percy during his speech, but it was not like the demigod could stop him. " **You, on the other hand, will be long dead before this happens."**

Ignoring the use of any weapon, the god of war dived at the hero with only his gloved fists. Given that his armor had spiky parts everywhere, one could in theory consider his hands to be a weapon by itself. Factor in ten times the kryptonian strength and you have most dangerous tool of destruction on this planted. Except the trident of Poseidon.

Percy charged his trident and fired a torrent of lightning at the god, at the same time draining all the magic, which he immediately sent back. The more he hit him with, the stronger Ares magic became. Thus, with more power he could drain even more. At first lightning was only able to slow him because of surprise, but soon, when infused with enough of his power, this attack started to actually hurt him. Letting out a roar of rage, Ares slammed his hands into the ground, sending a wave of tremors in all directions. Percy, thanks to his father's earthshaker domain, was completely unfazed. Ignoring all the rules of fair engagement, the god of war commanded all the legions to advance at Percy. Some of the skeletal warriors opened fire while others lunged at him. Percy could not stop the loop with his trident, so he was for a brief moment vulnerable for the attacks before water from around rose and formed a bubble shield. Only the tip of his weapon, from which the lightning originated, was outside. The stray bullet which managed to pass through hit him somewhere in the back. He shrugged it. There was no pain, so probably his partial invulnerability actually stopped it. At least that was for first fifteen seconds. Then, a sudden burst of burning feeling sent an involuntary convulsion through his body. The bulled did pierce his body, only he was in such a shock that nerve system didn't know how to respond. But now he fell on the ground. Immediately, all his powers died out. The bubble dropped and lightning stopped. Some of the bubble water fell onto his wound, which soothed some of the pain, but it did not heal. _Stupid Imperial Gold poisoning..._

 **"Now look at you. Kneeling before your god, eh? What do you want to say,** **Punk?"** Ares slowly floated toward him. He was now covering the sun and throwing a shade at Percy.

"That... You... Are ind-indeed..." Percy had to cough out some blood. "indeed stupid." He finished. With the amount of magic he drained from the god of war, Percy managed to shadow travel away. He had no idea how far he could get, but he knew there was no way he could stay here for certain death.

* * *

**Metropolis**   
**November 14, 20:56**

Robin led the squad inside the building. He, Artemis and Miss Martian were making their way through the maintenance tunnel while the rest waited outside. The preliminary scans showed nothing inside of the building, but the mere presence of this way proved that to be false. There was some sort of shielding around the building. It blocked all communication systems. That's why their Mind-link was so crucial.

" _Robin. Update."_

" _We are moving slowly to avoid detection. So far there was no visible exit from the vent, but it was under the floor when we entered and now we are above an empty space."_

_"Acknowledged. We will move in on your signal. Stay vigilant"_

The three heroes finally saw the end of this tunnel. It was an elevator shaft similar to the one in Cadmus official place, except ten times larger. It was designed to transport cargo and even vehicles if needed. "Jackpot!" Robin whispered. " _Aqualad. We found the elevator shaft. Moving down to gather further intel. You are free to enter."_ He sent and fired a grappling line. This time he was prepared and had enough to get him down fifty-two levels.

Aqualad noted and together with Aquagirl, Tempest, Superboy, Kid Flash and Zatanna moved onto the target. They crushed the doors to the empty warehouse and charged in. No alarm or even a sound. It was actually more creepy this way. Either they made a mistake, or there was something not exactly right. Traveling to the point where elevator was supposed to be if they were to believe Robin's location, they found themselves in front of large wall. Conner looked questioning at their leader and Kaldur nodded. The half-kryptonian lunged at the hidden entrance and created several cracks. The whole paint job fell down, revealing giant metal gate. It was reinforced in several places and looked like a way to the most resistant bunker in the world. There was only one mismatched detail.

"The shape is strange. If they wanted to reinforce it, they should've made it convex instead of concave." Wally spoke.

"Unless they didn't want to keep anyone out, but stop whatever they kept down there from escaping!" Tula voiced what everyone thought.

"That's bad. It means whoever they keep down there is most likely dangerous and really strong. Proceed with caution." Aqualad instructed. Suddenly, everyone heard a sound of vacuum being filled with air and the gate slowly opened. Behind stood Robin and his recon squad.

"Took you long enough." He smiled. They were standing on a large elevator. "We better get moving. Someone hacked the systems before we even got here."

"Maybe we should just call the league...?" Zatanna suggested shyly, not sure how the others will react.

"Negative. They already have their hands full. Captain Atom is counting on us." Kaldur was starting to pick up on the League's current leader military jargon. "If it is something really dangerous, we will call them, but better not have them go blindly."

The whole team walked onto the platform and Robin hacked the system to get them down. This building actually only had one level still operating. All other labs were long deserted and cut from the power grid with everything directed into the lowest one. The ride was dragging for what felt like an hour, but probably was not longer than ten minutes. They were all tense. The world they knew was falling apart and they were actually scared. The three Atlanteans especially. Atlantis' current ambassador was against any intervention, but king Orin was ready to mobilize the armies if he felt that the war can spread. Same went to Themyscira. If the two mythological lands made an alliance, it might have been a sign for other great powers to do a 'preemptive strike'. With each passing hour, tensions grew even higher. The smallest incident might lead to a new world war.

Finally, they reached down. What they saw made their blood freeze. The white corridor was in ruin. The lamps were hanging loosely above their heads, some flickering while others completely disabled. Walls were sprayed with some blood. Dozens of bodies littered the floor. Automated defense was destroyed with quick strikes and guards were killed in same way. Efficient was the word. Zatanna almost threw up. She hugged closely to Robin, who awkwardly reciprocated. He was one of the few who weren't affected by this, having seen similar crime scenes in Gotham.

"It's awful. Who would do such massacre." M'gann almost cried.

"A professional." Artemis gritted her teeth. She could recognize the tactic. It was Lady Shiva. Her father took her to the assassin woman few times for a training and it was exactly what she showed her. No unnecessary moves, no overextending, no witnesses. She was eleven back then. How she grew up to become a hero was beyond her.

Tula silently made a pray to Hades to accept this stray souls and Garth gritted his teeth. This guards should not have died just like that. Death was not something they were used to. Even during Black Manta attacks, his henchmen aimed to disable not kill. There were some casualties, but this was slaughter.

"We must move. be on your guard." Aqualad commanded. _This is too much like what Percy talked about..._

They walked through the corridor, seeing more deceased guards and destroyed turrets. Finally, they got to the crossroad. Three ways in total opened in front of them. The trail of destruction went to the right, but from the middle one came some strange sounds and lights. The turrets were on, but they were directed to the inside. They could also spot some trigger wires and lazers, probably connected to explosives of some sort. Right one was the least suspicious and most welcoming. Miss Martian could sense several people that way, but she didn't know who it was. Deep in the middle was some animalistic mind giving strong signature. She tried reading it, but she was overwhelmed by blood lust. All info was passed over to the rest of the team.

"Okay people. Please stay in line." Wally spoke, sounding like a tour guide. "On your right, you have a further path of destruction. Should you folks choose to follow it, we will meet with a deadly assassin with no regard of human life. Middle way is ridden with deadly traps and leads to the most vicious creature you will ever encounter. Besides angry Huntress that is, but moving on. The third path might actually be safe." He ignored the glare Artemis sent him on a mention of Zoe.

"What will it be, leader?" Conner asked. He was clearly distaste by all the death around, but he didn't show it.

"After the assassin... or after the monster..." Robin presented their options, ignoring Wally clearly voting for the probably safe way.

"That decision should belong to the whole team." Aqualad decided after a moment of thought. He silently pointed to the right path. Robin, Conner, M'gann, Artemis and Garth raised their hands. "After assassin it is..."

* * *

**UN Headquater**   
**November 15, 6:16**

Zoe was pissed. Gathering the whole committee took longer than she expected. Of course League could not enter foreign territory without either approval of this country leader or permission from general committee. Now she had to speak to whole bunch of cowardly politicians to save her boyfriend's life. By now he was probably already in life-or-death situation ten times worse than what she left him in. Now, she had to wait for her turn to speak while Captain Atom tired and failed to play a politician. Finally, Secretary general gave her voice. When she walked toward the microphone, she was glowing silver light and her steps created small cracks. Her patience run away long ago. But she had to keep it cool or innocents would die. And a whole bunch of politicians with them.

"Respected ambassadors. My name is Duchess Zoe Nightshade of Themyscira, the Lady of the Moon and Mistress of the Hunt, the heiress of Fair Lady Artemis, the last Huntress." She spoke all her titles like when she had the unpleasant experience of visiting some royal court during middle ages. "You've surely heard about the war between Qurac and Bialya." She started, earning a series of emotionless stares. This did not encourage her, but it did irritate her more. The silver aura flared more. "I am here to tell you that it was in fact staged from behind the scene by a dangerous criminal. His name is Ares." This earned a series of whispers and murmur going through the crowd.

"LIES!" Sumaan Harjavti, the newly appointed Quraci ambassador screamed. "Your insinuations are both harmful and false!"

"Is that so?" She asked through gritted teeth. Her voice was magnified by the series of speakers, making it sound much more menacing. There was a tingle of threat in her voice. "Then how will you explain this." The anger was masked with fake calmness, but all the ambassadors could see that she was barely holding herself back. She pressed a button on the pilot Captain Atom gave her and large screen behind her displayed the video Percy recorded. "This! Are the armies of Ares. Undead warriors marching through the sands of Qurac toward the front line. Only he can summon or command them. This is clear indication that he is involved into the war. He seeks to sow discontent between humanity and cause another great war. He lives of conflict! You must let the Justice League go there to help stop him."

"And how did you get this video?" Questioned the Markovian Ambassador.

"My Boyfriend and I were flying over the dessert when this armies attacked us." She explained truthfully.

"She admitted to breaking the regulation!" North Realasia ambassador raged. "Why do you Leaguers even come to us if you do anything you want anyway?!"

Captain Atom, from his honorary seat quickly spoke. "Miss Nightshade is in not a member, employee, nor an associate of the league. We did not sanction any mission."

"Then she should be tried as a spy of foreign power! She is an Amazon! Does Themyscira now ally themselves with criminals?!" Sumaan raged.

"YES!" Minerva, the Amazonian ambassador shouted, standing up. She was wearing usual armor and Zoe knew she had at least one weapon on her. "Ares is a war criminal and greatest enemy of Amazons. If your country is indeed allied with him, you are enemies of the Amazons and we will attack. He knows only war and must be stopped, least we want to witness war that will put Second World War to shame."

"This is an outrageous threat. You are walking on the thin ice Lady Minerva." Vlatavan ambassador warned her.

"It's Amazons' duty to stop Ares!"

"You can't declare war over baseless accusations."

"Your country did it in the past and you dare to teach us?"

"The mistakes of the past are not to be discussed here!"

"I was still there!"

The whole meeting devolved into chaos. A red mist slowly rose from the ground and slipped between arguing. They long since lost sight of the original cause or what they were discussing. They were all too busy to notice this. Zoe was the only one who saw this. Captain Atom was busy arguing with American Ambassador over his duties to country and the League. She could feel the rage overcome her, but she also knew this wasn't real. Someone put a spell on this room. Or dropped some gas. She summoned her bow and fired flashbang arrow, getting everyone's attention. Immediately, all the security guards pulled their guns and aimed at her. "Will you all just shut up?!" She screamed at the befuddled crowd. "this is what he wants. The conflict feeds him. It gives him more power. It gives him his source of life. To prolong his existence he needs conflict. Ares will die unless he manages to plunge the world into another great conflict."

"You are a liar and perpetrator. This is all some Amazons' scheme to conquer the world." American Ambassador raged.

Sumaan spoke. "I demand she be placed under arrest for espionage, misinformation, terrorist activity and threatening the lives of ambassadors."

"Threatening the lives?" She waved her bow. "The only one threatening the lives of people are you. Ares is manipulating all of you. He must be dealt with!"

"That's enough!" Secretary General stood up. "guards! Take her away."

Minerva stomped. "If you do this, it will be unlawful act against Themyscira and a declaration of war. We will retaliate!" She threatened.

"United States will not stand by against such threats. If Amazons are willing to go to war, so are we if it means stopping you!"

The room exploded into another conflict. Several guards approached Zoe, but she just flared her silver aura and they backed away. "I know my way out. Try something and it will be the last thing. I am not a member of the league and I know how to kill." She threatened. While the essence of Artemis provided her with some protection from this spell, she was not immune. The negative emotions were slowly overtaking her. She strolled, not even bothering to open the doors. She just tore them out of the frame. Outside more guards waited, but she held the two large, solid wood doors and clenched her hands, shattering them into splinters. They all made her way, not willing to risk lives just yet. She just walked.

Zoe was already at the end when one of more brave, or more stupid, guards pulled his gun and shot at her. The bullet would hit the back of her head, killing any normal person, but instead she caught it. When she let go, it was only _dust._ She pulled her bow and fired series of arrows, pinning every guard by his shoulder to the wall. They bled and some might have a long-lasting health problems, but she was pissed. The spell was taking better of her and she had to move. Zoe started to run, already summoning her chariot. If the league could not help her, someone else would.

* * *

**Metropolis**   
**November 14, 23:59**

The Team closed on the assassin. They could hear some computer typing. After another turn they came upon a doors that were blown by some explosive. Inside of the room was Lady Shiva. They instantly recognized the most dangerous assassin woman on earth (in their common opinion Zoe was more dangerous after they witnessed the video of her walking through the island full of deadly assassins). She was typing something on the computer in front of the large glass.

"Don't hide back. There is no point." She spoke without turning from the computer. "I know that you are here so might as well come. I will not hurt you. Yet..." She let the threat hang in the air. Team reluctantly entered the room. They were all ready to fight her. She had her blades tucked behind the sash around her waist. "My Master specifically instructed me to not harm you unless provoked. You can as well stay here. This is probably the safest place right now." She said without much care as she typed final commands to the computer. Behind them a series of metal doors closed, locking them in the same room. The windows suddenly darkened.

Team, still cautious, walked forward and surrounded her. Somehow, it did not give them any more confidence. After what they witnessed they were shaken. This woman was willing to kill without second thought and take any chance. Wally was the first to speak. "what are you planning, Shiva?"

"My master demanded to release the beast. This facility rebelled and he ordered me to make sure his will is carried out." She spoke and they noticed there was something different. It was like she was not quite herself and she tried to fight it. The others acted on some hunch, but Artemis knew well that she was in fact not like herself. Old Shiva carried herself with more pride. This one was almost submissive...

"Who do you serve?" The green archeress asked.

"Does not matter. Now look through the glass. You are about to witness the beginning of the end. Meet... Doomsday." She pointed her hand at the chamber below. Once they looked down for the second time during this mission their blood froze. Over eight feet tall monster covered in gray skin stood in blue energy field. His neck was protected with metallic collar and he wore green pants, but besides this he wore nothing. His hands, head, chest, back, feet and knees were covered in bone-like material forming giant spikes. His mouth was filled with sharp teeth. The beast slowly walked outside of the field and toward the doors. "This room is the only place he won't destroy. He will kill everything on his way and tear apart any civilization." She spoke. This was really not like her. Lady Shiva would always limit the given information to minimum requited.

Through mind-link, Artemis spoke to Zatanna. " _I think she is being controlled by some magic. Can you break this spell?"_

" _I can try, but I will need help._ "

Tula joined. " _Me, Garth and Kaldur can help."_

" _Okay, but you must hold her down for a moment."_ Zatanna told them. They all nodded.

"Let's do this!" Wally spoke and dashed at Shiva with super speed. She tried to counter him, but an arrow flew past her sash, tearing it and causing her blades to fall. Superboy pulled her other hand, while M'gann made a metal cuff around her other that weighted her down. She tried to escape, but they were holding her too tight.

Zatanna walked in front of her, three Atlanteans behind her. Their tattoos glowed light blue and they all touched her back with their right hand. Young sorceress could feel the arcane power flowing through her. She extended both of her hands toward assassin. Power that was coursing through her made her eyes glow and caused her to levitate in the air slightly. " ** _Yam cigam evael ouy dna e_** ** _sruc eb nekorb!_** " the power behind her words made the whole room shake, but it was made to withstand direct force of several nuclear explosions at point-blank range. Nothing could even scratch this walls. Shiva whirled in pain. She tried not to scream, but a small whimper escaped her. Zatanna focused more and channeled all the magic she could muster, as well as draining the power from her 'support staff'. Slowly, a black mist escaped the lips of Lady Shiva.

" **You are already too late. The monster was released. He will prepare the world for my arrival. Soon, you will all fall before my power.** " This voice was nothing like what they knew. It was... ancient. That was the only way to describe it. Eldritch even. Whoever it was, he was older than even Ares.


	23. Endgame: Doomsday

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N this was supposed to be up three days ago, but I got sick and I was in no shape to write. But as a compensation this chapter is packed with action. I loved writing it. Finally some more actual combat!

* * *

_"We are facing a global crisis here. Qurac has some strong support in UN. Many see their preventive attack as just. ..."_

_...They were Ares personal army. The fallen who lost the battle and had to pay their debt to the god of war._

_**"...Not even your League will stop me in time. Partially because I have other things to keep them busy. I am like ten supermen. ..."** _

_"It's awful. Who would do such massacre." M'gann almost cried._   
_"A professional." Artemis gritted her teeth._

_"...Miss Nightshade is in not a member, employee, nor an associate of the league. We did not sanction any mission."_

_"My master demanded to release the beast..."_

_" **You are already too late. The monster was released. He will prepare the world for my arrival. Soon, you will all fall before my power.** " This voice was nothing like what they knew. It was... ancient._

* * *

Images of all the current events were displayed on a glowing mirror in the air. The Highfather watched with distraught. By looking into The Source, he could see glimpses of past, present and future. This confirmed what Zoe Nightshade, the newest New Goddess, told him.

"Now you understand? I need your help. New Gods are the only one that will be able to fight him. The Justice League is outmatched and too tangled into politics." She reasoned. "If earth falls under Ares' dominion, they will wage war on all universe. And by his blessing they will be able to win. The bloodshed must be stopped before he unites the Earth under himself."

Inzaya pondered her words. He had to be very careful when dealing with old gods, but Miss Nightshade made a good points. Left to his own, Ares could become a problem. At the same time, he was also constrained by the laws and tradition of New Genesis. They were forbidden from intervening in the matters of 'lower civilizations'. Until any country on earth actually embraced Ares or allied themselves with him in any official way, he had to treat this as a hearsay or at best a legitimate accusation needed to be proven.

"I see your point, but my hands are tied. Nothing I could do would be fast enough..." The old ruler bowed his head in regret.

"What! That is ridiculous!"

"I am truly sorry child. Time is not on our side." He started to walk away. "I wish there was something I could help you with, but I have no idea..."

Zoe was fuming. She thought that New Gods of all people would understand her trouble. They were at the state of constant war with Apokalips. _Surely they would be willing to help with very similar problem._ She thought when traveling here. Oh! How naive. By now she wasted probably two days of earth time. Her last, greatest and only hope of allies. This was all or nothing. And it turned out nothing.

While strolling through the beautiful, highly advanced town toward her chariot she encountered dreamer. The Huntress was in no mood for any talk, but pink-clad woman stopped her. "Zoe! What are you doing here? How did you even get here?"

New New Goddess sighted. "I needed help. This was the last place I could find any. Now... Now I..." She was at the loss of words. For a moment she was gonna give up, but her instincts kicked in. She was a warrior and sooner the Olympus would fall than she would surrender. "Now I must find another way. By now Ares have already plunged the world into conflict."

"That's awful. I wish Forever People could help." Dreamer sighted. "But like Highfather said, we are forbidden."

"By whom? Who can forbid thou?" An idea formed in Zoe's head.

"The guardians of the universe. They are living embodiment of emotion spectrum just as New Gods are embodiment of Source. In the past, we wanted to help lower species achieve greatness, but it proven... dangerous." Dreamer was clearly ashamed of whatever incident happened, but Zoe did not pry. "They are the ones behind Green Lantern Corps."

"Can they help? Can they do something?" A new hope glimmered in her eyes as the huntress spoke.

"I do not know. New Gods leave us alone as long as we abide to the treaty. I have no idea what they will do."

"It's worth a shot..." Zoe sighted.

"I wish you all the best. Maybe we shall meet again, this time in less... dire situation?" Dreamer sounded genuine.

"I... I would like that. You are a good friend." After a moment of hesitation, the huntress admitted. If it was not for dreamer, she would probably wait too long to make a move on Percy. Or she would keep hating all the males. It was wrong, but it took some outside perspective to understand. Meeting only the worst of the kind for millennia tend to bias one's judgement.

With haste, Percy went to her chariot and pulled a crystal which contained map of the known universe, a handy thing she borrowed from Superman. He asked her only not to break it before running off to another league emergency. Something about monster in metropolis, but she had to hope that others will take care of it.

* * *

**Metropolis  
November 15, 5:33**

On the outskirts of Metropolis what remained of the Justice League bravely tried to make their stand. The monster that media already dubbed Doomsday was relentless in his march of destruction. When he appeared out of nowhere in the middle of the night, first few leaguers were deployed. Batman and Captain Atom were closest ones, so they responded fastest, but the beast proven more than capable of wiping the floor with two sorry heroes. More leaguers responded, but they made a crucial mistake of coming in waves. One by one, the heroes were knocked out or they suffered great bodily harm. Green Arrow had his left arm broken by debris thrown by enraged monster. Emerald Archer tried to distract Doomsday from going after group of citizens and managed to taunt him out of the most populated city area, but finally the beast got him. It it wasn't for Flash, Oliver would be ended there and then, but Scarlet Speedster managed to move Emerald Archer out of the way. Barry then proceeded to strike the monster at several angles until beast, tired of trying and failing to catch the zooming hero, punched the ground. The sheer force broke asphalt in fifty feet radius and shockwave was strong enough to knock Barry away. Doomsday then jumped at the hero, but he was intercepted by Captain Marvel.

Two Goliath exchanged punches one for one, but neither was really being harmed here. Instead, the mystical hero opted for another tactic. He grabbed gray titan in the headlock and exposed his chest to sky.

" _SHAZAM!"_ The discharge of mystical energy traveled from the sky. It hit Doomsday right in his chest, but to Marvel's surprise, the beast did not even feel it. He seemed to disperse all the magic just before it made contact. There was no time to analyze it now, because before he knew it, the red-clad hero was tossed onto the ground. Billy stood up and readied himself for another round. He tried to punch Doomsday, but before his first connected the monster punched him in the face. Beast then repeatedly pummeled the young hero. First bruises appeared. Finally, the one punch was strong enough to send Captain Marvel flying away. He crashed through a wall into a living room of a house. He silently prayed that the building was empty as brutal killer machine broke through the roof. Marvel dodged and then reciprocated. He put all the strength of Heracles into this one punch and it sent Doomsday through another wall back onto the street. Captain dashed after. The giant crater on the floor in which Doomsday laid was slowly filling with water as apparently the pipe broke. This gave the hero an idea. He flew to nearest lamppost and tore it off the ground. Doomsday was still dazed from the punch. Using two wires left from where the pole was just a second ago, her tore them further and flew back to the pool of water. Beast prepared to take the punch but instead he was met with sudden shock of thousands of volts traveling through his body. The whole quarter went dark.

Marvel hoped that it was over. He kept the wires in just for a moment longer to make sure when suddenly a hand shot from Doomsday and grabbed him by the neck. Monster was now ignoring the electric currents traveling through him and held the hero high by his neck. Some sparks jumped over to Captain, painfully stinging him. The beast then pummeled him down into the charged water. Billy wanted to cry in pain as the high voltage went through him. The only thing stopping him was that his head was fully submerged. If he did, the water would get into his lungs. Still, slowly, his consciousness escaped him bit by bit. In last desperate attempt he punched the large arm holding him. He heard a sound of shattering bone, but it was his own fist. This time he finally let out a cry of pain and almost immediately water filled his lungs. He had one last trick that could save him or kill him. But since he was dying anyway, the risk was worth it.

" _SHAZAM!_ " He shouted through bubbles of water. Lightning fell from the sky and instantly made all the water evaporate. Doomsday was not affected by it in any way, but Captain Marvel turned into Billy Batson. The monster was not ready for the sudden change in shape, so Billy managed to slip out of his grasp. He wanted to change again, but the monster lunged at him. He landed right in front of him creating a shockwave that pushed him away. He hit the wall and fell unconscious. Monster wanted to finish him off when finally more Leaguers arrived. Hawkman, Hawkwoman and the Reds appeared. Five more heroes took battle stance and rushed together at the enemy.

* * *

**Somewhere over Atlantic Ocean**   
**November 15, 11:16**

Bioship was traveling at high speed barely below the clouds. They could not go above and into orbit without triggering at least some satellites. Their destination? Qurac.

After Lady Shiva was freed from... whatever this creepy thing was, they handed her into police custody. League was dealing with them monster, but they had other problems. Apparently, Zoe was now number one most wanted for attack on General Assembly of United Nations. She contacted them, telling that she was 'leaving to look for allies'. Now the monster was tearing down Metropolis, god of war was about to pull the world into greatest conflict in the history of mankind, amazons started preparing to march on the Qurac and anyone who dares to try and stop them, Atlantis became torn between their ancient treaty with Amazons and recent pacts made with NATO and to add to the chaos both Green Lanterns were still off-world and Doctor Fate was AWOL.

M'gann said it could not be any worse and then the universe decided to prove her wrong.

* _few hours before*_

_Superboy and Tempest handed over tied Lady Shiva to the police and returned to the rest of the team. They just contacted the league and received a full update. It was not looking good. If they had to imagine end of the world, this would be pretty much it. Maybe there would be more alien ships in case of Wally or some cool giant dinosaur if you asked Garth. Who knew Atlanteans did appreciate monster movies._

_"What happens now?" Artemis asked. "I mean what can we do? League is trying to control the situation, but it's clear that it's way out of hand."_

_"The only thing we can do..." Aqualad stated solemnly, "Is do our best. We can't give up hope. It is not yet too late." He tried to lift their spirits, but it didn't work that well._

_"I fear this might be the beginning of the end." Garth said sadly while holding Tula's hand. The girl remained completely silent, opting to just stay close to her lover._

_"Don't worry. There is still Percy. He defeated Ares twice. And the league will deal with the monster." Robin tried to retain the good attitude, but maybe he overdid himself because M'gann was too cheered to remember rule number zero._

_"Yeah. At least it won't get any worse than it already is, right?" This made Wally, Artemis and Zatanna grasp._

_"Oh no. You had to say it? Really? You know what happens now?" The green archer moaned._

_Right on cue, the communicator beeped. Kaldur was the one to pick up. "Yes?"_

_"Uh... Hi? I am Marie Logan. There is an unconscious boy in some torn clothes. He managed only to say 'The Team' before passing away. Who am I speaking too?" This woman was clearly in much more panic that she showed._

_"This is Aqualad. Miss Logan. Did he by any chance carry a Trident?"_

_"He does have a tattoo of a trident on his right arm..." She spoke over the comm._

_"Percy!" The others, who all listened to the talk, grasped. Aqualad tried to remain calm, but he was starting to get worried._

_"Please listen. In his belt there should be a vial with liquid looking similar to apple juice. Please pour it over any wounds he might have and make sure he drinks some. If you give us the address, we will come pick him up as soon as possible. Do you know who he is? Or who I am."_

_"He is a superhero Neptune. You are Aquaman's protegee. Just because I live in a desert does not mean I don't watch the news." Woman now sounded angry._

_"Good. Please wait patiently. We are coming." The Atlantean ended the call and turned to his teammates. "Looks like we are going to Qurac after all." He said and showed them the address._

_*Now*_

They were only half-an-hour away. The tension was high. From what they managed to get, Percy appeared in the middle of the day on their couch, bleeding profoundly. His body was littered with wounds and bruises. He was in his superhero outfit until he pressed the button on his belt and it all turned into his normal clothes. He handed Marie a communicator and managed to say 'the team' before passing out.

Right now they spoke only once more. His condition was stable, but he was still unconscious. They had to get him out of there before anyone realizes. Only M'gann seemed overly excited with all this situation.

"Hey, M.? Are you okay?" Artemis decided to finally ask. "Given everything that happened recently and for someone flying to literal war zone, you seem quite... ecstatic."

"I am about to meet Marie Logan. Of course I am enthusiastic. She is my idol." she noticed the weird looks they were sending her. "I mean... Uh. The work. Her work. I mean the work she is doing for wildlife preservation." She started to babble. The rest opted to ignore her strange behavior. The pressure was more than probable explanation.

During their flight, they had to avoid several air patrols. Luckily, there was no air battle here. The front line was more to the north for now. This region was of no strategic value with minimum human activity. Well, outside of the Logan Animal Sanctuary that is. The camouflage mode was some help, but many of the aircraft were equipped with state-of-art scanners and various other tech. Finally, they saw a single house in the middle of savanna. The bio-ship approached and landed in the yard between the main building and the barn. A middle-aged woman walked out of the building. She was a Caucasian female with red hair, blue eyes and freckles. Her hair was kept back in a short ponytail. Marie wore firm boots, cargo shorts, and a safari jacket over a white shirt.

"Good. You are finally here. I was starting to get worried. With war raging everywhere I feared you might get shot down or something." She stopped dead in her track when she saw M'gann. If the martian changed her skin color to white, they could pass as sisters. A younger boy also run from the house.

"Mom! A spaceship just landed. I saw it from my room!" he then stopped and saw a bunch of superheroes. Sure, one randomly popped in their living room a while ago, but he was some random dude. This were Robin, Aqualad and Kid Flash... and a bunch of other superheroes. "Whoa..." He then saw Miss Martian. "You look just like my mom, but... green."

The team sent Miss Martian a questioning stares. They could see the resemblance, but somehow they felt there was more than just that. M'gann looked like she wanted nothing more than to go camouflage and hide. There was a kind of uncomfortable silence for a moment before Robin finally spoke up. "How is Neptune?"

Marie was glad for the change of subject. "We patched him up. Whatever was in this vials probably saved his life. His wounds didn't close but bleeding diminished enough that we could actually do something. He is still asleep though."

"Figures. Shadow Travel is a very taxing technique." Tula spoke like she was an expert. "What? Remember what he told us about Nico? According to him the guy could sleep for weeks." She smiled triumphantly to Garth. She always had better memory than him.

"Let's see him." Kaldur suggested.

"Right this way."

* * *

**Metropolis  
November 15, 7:20**

All three reds were now in pieces. Their cores were miraculously intact, so they could be repeaired, but the damage they sustained was near-critical. Hawkwoman and Hawkman were both unconscious. He had both of his wings broken while she had shattered ribs and her arm was dislocated. Their Nth Metal armor provided to be pretty much useless against the beast. Doomsday's body was unfazed by the properties of alien material. Instead, he wiped the floor with them. Hawks tried to use dive-attack technique, but monster just caught both of them and then proceeded with beating them to unconscious. While unconscious Shayera was dying from internal bleeding, Katar tried to fight despite his injuries. He stood between rampaging beast and his wife with Mace raised high and ready. Doomsday charged and Hawkman readied himself to deliver one last, desperate attack. Monster closed the distance in fraction of second and was met with devastating swing, but it was a moment too late. The spike on his knuckle connected with the armor and pierced it. Doomsday lifted the impaled hero before discarding him. It decided that the bleeding would kill him soon enough.

Beast was about to proceed with it's killing of Shayera when in the distance sonic boom could be heard. A blue blur zoomed through the sky and slammed into Doomsday at mach seven. The force thing didn't stop there and instead picked the monster up and flew with him. The impact wave shattered the remaining windows in the now evacuated sub-urbs.

Superman was flying as fast as he could. At the same time, he was moving Doomsday by delivering rapid punches to his face and gut. They were above Metropolis when suddenly monster grabbed kryptonian by it's neck and spun him around before using the extra momentum to launch him down at the city. The man of steel landed in the middle of city park, sending dirt flying in all directions and obliterating the whole place. Crater was thirty feet deep at the lowest point. Before Clark could stand up the falling mass of bones and unbreakable skin pummeled into him. Kryptonian absorbed most of the impact, but he felt it. Hard.

The monster started to give back for all the punches during their brief flight. Superman in response fired laser beam at the beast, temporarily blinding him. He had to take it away from the city. Even if they evacuated most of it, there could still be some civilians and even if not, the damage from such fight could level this place. Before he could do anything, monster flung his hand almost randomly and backhanded the man of steel. Clark was sent flying away. He crashed through several concrete walls of the nearby skyscraper until he finally stopped on the other side. Doomsday was not far behind.

The two landed in front of Lexcorp building. The only upside of this situation was that Clark was there faster. He had enough time between landing and arrival of his opponent to stand up and get ready. He was now floating slightly above the ground. Doomsday crashed in front of him, sending a shockwave in front of him. Should Superman stand on the ground, he would surely be knocked off balance, but the monster was predictable enough. Beast relied only on pure strength and ferocity and could be defeated with tactic. Batman would be proud of Clark right now. He was actually putting to use what the dark knight tried to teach him for years.

 _I can't defeat him by overpowering him, but he must have some weakness. If I just say up long enough to find it I might be able to knock him out._ It sounded very similar to Bruce's voice in his head. Then, Clark heard another, slightly different. _Not killing isn't always an option. Sometimes you must choose between one life of a villain and millions of innocent._ It sounded like a cross between Percy and Diana. They both made such arguments more than once. He had no idea what was the drive in this monster, but he didn't show any sings of intelligence. Just mindless rage.

The two titans stared at one another for what felt like hours, but was more like fifteen seconds at best. Then, the beast roared and lunged at the man of steel. He ducked and instead delivered an uppercut. Then, as a follow up a quick series of punches to the unarmored area of beasts stomach. Superman then flew up, only to go down again delivering an incredibly strong hay-maker. To his surprise, Doomsday just shrugged off most of his attacks like they were nothing. The monster instead grabbed him by the neck and did an overhead throw. He wanted to jump onto the hero, but Superman fired lasers on him with such force that he was actually tossed back a few feet. It gave him time he needed to stand up.

To his dismay, Doomsday was pretty much not even scratched while he was already feeling some wounds. His skin was not pierced in any place, but the stain each punch put on his body was tremendous. The monster did not wait for him to feel better. Instead, he lunged at him and delivered haymaker on his own. Clark realized too late that because he was flying, the force would send him away. He crashed few dozen feet away. Shaking his head to clear the remaining dizziness, the man of steel then dashed back, achieving mach seven almost immediately. The soundwave created by him moving on hypersonic speed shattered all the windows in the area. He smashed into the monster with one strong punch to his lower abdomen, which was the least armored part, right where the bone plate on his chest ended. The monster cried in pain as the very thing that was supposed to protect him pierced his skin. Dark, almost black blood flowed a bit, but the wound quickly sealed. Superman still used this opportunity to punch him few times, drawing a bit more of his blood before all finally healed.

The beast roared, but Clark could also hear another type of roar: the sound of helicopter engine. He looked up to see Daily Planet chopper. Inside was, of course... Lois Lane. He could hear her transmitting live from the fight. The man of Steel mad a crucial mistake of looking in that direction. Monster also turned his head there. Before Superman could react, he lunged at the machine. His boned knuckles cut through the tail and sent the machine tumbling out of control. Clark dashed without thinking. He caught the helicopter and placed it on the nearest roof.

"Superman. Any comment on the situation?" Lois Lane was a journalist before she was woman, human or a living being. It seemed to be hard-coded into her DNA. It was the only explanation why in the middle of a battle between two force of nature she found time to ask them for a comment.

"Lois. Listen to me! Get out of here now. Hide, run, but most importantly stay out of this. It's not safe." Clark spoke, hoping to appeal to her sense of self-preservation. But he forgot that she exchanged it for her second Pulizer prize.

"No way. You are here. We are perfectly safe." She was stubborn too. Clark could hear the monster smashing through different buildings down below, searching for him. Making a split-second decision, he fried the camera with his laser vision and crushed the microphone.

"transmission over. Get! Away!" Before she could react in any possible way (rage and send him to sleep on the couch for next month at least), he was already gone.

Superman flew over the trail of destruction. In the distance, he could see the monster tearing through empty cars and buildings. He was charging at the giant statue of the man of steel holding the globe on his shoulders. Poetic to many, stupid to Clark. He dashed forward and slammed into the beast. He pushed Doomsday into the statue and melted the bronze it was made of. White-hot liquid covered the creature as tons of metal formed a mound around him. The metal cooled and imprisoned Doomsday under over ten tons of durable material. The man of Steel thought this enough to imprison anyone, but yet again the monster abolished every thesis regarding his strength and managed to shatter it all from the inside. The elements flew in every direction. Some embbed themselves in the walls or concrete, others devastated more cars. Some assaulted Superman who closed his eyes and withstood the attack, but one really unlucky projectile broke right between his eyelids and got inside. Clark screamed as unbearable pain went through his head. While the skull stopped it from damaging anything important and the eye could regenerate, it would first need to be surgically removed before healing process could start. Enraged, Clark zoomed at doomsday and delivered yet another series of punched to his lower abdomen. It was clear that while most things were useless against the monster, his own body was the best weapon. Thus, the man of steel aimed his attacks at the points where his bone armor connected with the skin or where he could tear some of the spikes.

Suddenly, the sound of thrusters filled the air. A giant mecha-armor flew to the scene. On it's chest was Lexcorp log. Above it was a small TV screen on which was head of Lex Luthor himself. Not far behind it was Lois Lane and her cameraman. _Of course she had backup equipment in the chopper._

"Now the whole world can see that aliens only bring destruction." Luthor spoke with pride and anger in his voice. While he had his back turned to camera, it was clear he wanted to make a scene. "Only we, humans can save ourselves. It goes like... THAT!" Suddenly his left hand, which Clark only now noticed was a giant canon, fired a green beam of energy at both other combatants. While Doomsday was pretty much unfazed by it, Superman screamed in pain. Kryptonite laser.

Monster lunged at the mech. A bubble shield appeared around it, but monster kept punching it. Slowly, with each punch, the energy shimmered more and more. Finally, it let go and monster was free to tear out the arm with cannon. Inside, Lex was panicking. The beam he fired was supposedly strong enough to cut through diamonds with ease and yet it did nothing against the monster. Doomsday already destroyed both of his hands. Luthor raised right leg of his armor and aimed it at his adversary. Beam of hot fire hit him in the chest and at the same time propelled the billionaire back. He balanced himself and several plates on his back opened. Barrage of missiles flew out and hit the monster square in the chest. He only grunted and for a moment Luthor could swear that it smiled at the attempt.

The armor's energy reserve was rapidly decreasing. Lex checked, only to see the kryptonite core which powered the whole invention was damaged. Any second it could blow up. Thinking fast, Luthor pressed eject button, but only after activating thrusters and launching the machine at the monster. The powerful construction crashed with killing machine. The explosion that resulted destroyed large chunk of the road and surrounding area, but Doomsday was barely scratched. Few wounds here and there which all closed almost immediately.

_Damn you Thrawn. This experiment of yours might cost us everything._

Doomsday came with a response to the attack: smash the human who hurt him. The relentless beast lunged at Luthor, but the billionaire was saved last moment by blue blur.

"Great. Now whole world saw me get saved by big blue scout." Lex grumbled. He then turned to camera "Thank you Superman. I don't know what would happen without you..." To keep his PR high, he had to act like he was grateful. Ugh. could this day get worse?

Superman already was far away, locked in blow-for-blow battle with Doomsday. They were still in the crater created by the kryptonite explosion.

 _It's pointless. I can't subdue him. He is too resistant. None of my attacks work._ Clark was still blind on one eye. he couldn't even risk using heat-vision, least he was ready to risk permanent damage to his eyeball. Should he melt the bronze in it, it would damage the nerves and probably make the semi-blindness permanent. Clark looked back to see Lois at the edge of the crater. _I must stop him. I can't let him run rampart through my city, my country, my planet! I. must. save. LOIS!_

With the last effort, Superman flew back, only to five at his opponent. He started to spin with his hands in front of him. It was like a drill was going at Doomsday with mach seven and god only knows how many rotates per second. His hands connected with Monster's chest, but while he did hear shattering sound, and the bone protrusion that protected his vital organs shattered, together with probably most bones in the beast's body, Clark felt excruciating pain pass through his chest. He looked down to see a hand going through it. Not a hand, a spike from knuckles of Doomsday. While the monster's body started to fall lifeless on the ground, Superman felt his strength slowly leave him as well. The bone was still there, probably the only thing that stopped him from dying. When the two titans fell, the cape got caught in exerting pole and tore from the suit. For only a brief moment he was stuck to it, but it was enough to move him from the bone protrusion. As he felt the blood sip from him and his consciousness escape, the last thoughts were directed toward Lois. He cherished the fact she was safe. He did what had to be done to save her. The woman he loved was no longer in danger...

_Forgive me..._

Cameraman and Lois looked down the crater. They saw two lifeless-like bodies. The whole world watched how the greatest hero known to them died, protecting the city he loved. The journalist felt her legs give up on her. She fought against her own body to get to her lover. Her high heels were not helpful but she managed. Clark was bleeding profoundly. The large hole in his chest was just enough prove of how bad his condition was. She wanted to hold him, to hug him, to at least tell him it would be okay. She wanted to tell him that everything was done.

"You won. The monster is dead... Now it's time to go home." She was crying. Her tears fell on his lifeless body. The cameraman ended the transmission, unable to hold his own tears. Today, earth lost it's greatest citizen.

* * *

**Qurac  
November 15, 14:33**

Heroes stayed inside with Percy. The further examination proven that he was more or less stable, but it was dangerous to move him until his wounds closed completely. They decided to stay inside while the Logans conducted their daily activities at the sanctuary. It was for the best. Should they've been seen, it would cause great deal of trouble to the family, who was so kind as to let them stay and saved Neptune's life.

"Ugh. The waiting is killing me. There is nothing to do here. And to add to that, I don't even know what is going on out there since we are under 'complete radio silence'. Stupid war." Wally kicked the wall. Of course in the fit of rage he forgot to control himself. A pained yealp escaped his mouth. Artemis let out a chuckle and walked to him.

"Now you are bored, anxious and in pain." She gave him a triumphant smile before helping him stand. She turned to her teammates. "I will go get him patched."

"Miss Logan said that the first aid kit is still in Per... Neptune's room." Tula wanted to follow them, but Artemis gestured her to stay sited.

"Thanks. I will manage."

The two of them entered Percy's room. Artemis put the speedster down on the chair and looked around for the first aid kit. While he took off his shoe, she spoke.

"Do you... do you think we can win?"

"Of course. Why wouldn't we?" He answered immediately. Too fast even for him. She could see through the illusion, but he didn't sound like he tried to convince her. He was trying to assure himself.

" ** _You can't_** " They both heard the voice in their heads. " _ **Not with them. But I give you a choice. You can die here, or accept my invitation. Pour the potion I gave you into his mouth and you shall be ensured to thrive in the new order.**_ "

Just for a second, they saw themselves having a happy life. Away from the danger. Wally was a scientist, the head of the Star Labs and she was a teacher at nearby school. The whole happy life under new regime flashed and was gone before even second passed. The images felt more like memories that were embed into their minds in an instant.

Artemis felt her hand instinctively go to the pocket in which she kept the vial, but stopped half-way. She looked to see Wally have almost the same reaction. Two of them exchanged glances and nodded.

"No!" They both said aloud. Not loud enough for their teammates to hear, but they wanted to make it clear that this is final. That they are willing to die if it means protecting their friends.

" _ **Ashame. You had so much potential in you. A daughter of two assassins and the man who survived drinking ichor. But you are mistaken. Your death will protect no one. Because you do not die today.**_ "

Suddenly, both the archer and speedster felt their respective cursed items pulse with power and in an instant, any and all resistant was gone. All the pain, all the rage, all the love, all the emotions, all of them was emptied. Only thing that remained were bodies. The soulless Artemis pulled the vial and walked to Percy. She poured the content into his mouth and then made a pseudo-bandage on Wally's leg. Without his 'me', his body did not process pain. In their puppet-master's mind there was no need to actually fix his body.

* * *

When the two returned to the room, the others were just trying to watch the news. A reporter showed scene of Superman's death. They all watched in horror as the man of Steel fell. There was no question about him being dead. His chest was pierced up to the point where the bone was sticking from the other side. They both laid in the crater: The monster and Knight who defeated him, saving the princess, alas at the cost of his life.

The feed ended with Lois Lane holding the lifeless body and crying. Seeing the scene, both Wally and Artemis walked out of the room. Nobody really suspected anything. The team shrugged it as their way to deal with it. Everyone mourned. Superboy wanted to deny it, but there was suddenly this void inside of him that he could not explain. There were no tears at his side, but he felt grief.

* * *

**OA**

Zoe was led in front of the Guardians by two lanterns, neither of whom was human. She stood in front of multiple pillars formed from dark green stones. Above each such pillar floated a short man in red robe with symbol of the Green Lantern Corps on it. They all had grey skin and white hairs. Another alien, who stood by the platform came to her. He had pink skin and his black hair was combed back. The most prominent feature of his face was a mustache that screamed 'villain from early television'. He spoke in some language that Zoe could not understand, but luckily it was translated by his ring.

"You stand before the Guardians of the Universe. State your business." He sent her a glare which meant to say that he was superior to her in every possible way. To his surprise and dread, she responded with different glare. Sinestro was not an easily frightened man, but it sent chill down his spine. It was the type of glare that without any words communicated an idea: 'I can kill you in hundred way before you managed to blink and I am willing to follow up on that threat'. To say Zoe was furious would be an understatement of the decade. Her emotions were going haywire. She was scared, worried, angry, irritated, anxious and dozen other things at the same time. The fear about her newfound home and her boyfriend. The worry for the future and the friends she made. Angry at the mortal world for playing into Ares hands. Irritated with how much formality she had to go through to get help. Anxious about being about to speak with her real last hope. That is unless there was some other super-powerful organization in this universe she didn't know about.

"I come to ask for help. Green Lantern Corps is organization dedicated to creating peace across space. On earth, the old god known as Ares managed to instigate a war that by now have probably already engulfed the whole planet. His plans are unclear, but he is not to be taken lightly. He enchanted the leaders of the world, making it impossible for them to form any substantial resistance." She tried to speak clearly and act diplomatically, but her fuse was practically nonexistent at the moment. It would take one spark for her to blow up with a force of a nuclear warhead.

"This seems like planets internal conflict. Why should we worry ourselves with this?" The guardian in the middle, apparently their leader, spoke. This was it.

"Maybe because you stupid, useless males claim to stand guard of peace in the universe. Ares has only two goals: Power and instigating conflict. He is the ultimate incarnation of bloodlust and anger. His mere presence can make frieds jump at their throats! So move your small gray podices and go do something!" She screamed at them. Her silver aura flared and for a moment all present could smell the scent of pine trees native to earth.

"You will not achieve anything through violence here, child. We have law against intervening in planet's internal affairs. Green Lanters can work with authorities to stop criminals, but war is a matter of politics. There are never clear boundaries between good and bad. Each side always have some right to them." Another guardian spoke.

"Except when one of the sides is literary under the command of a being that feeds of conflict. Ares will decimate the population if it means he gets more power. What do you think will happen once there is no more fighting on earth. He might be stupid, but he knows that there are other alien civilizations. He is the last old god of war. He is the sole owner of this domain. And war always has it's followers. They will be those who will follow him. Be it for power, glory, riches, or maybe from sole love of violence. He will not stop unless someone stops him. If you are just wasting my time, I will leave. But I will remember that in the future. And immortals tend to have a very good memory." Her face was full of rage. There was not a fraction of understanding for the Guardians' actions. In her eyes they were cowards hiding behind laws they put in place. She sent them the worst death stare ever. Her silver aura was flaring around, ready to explode any second.

Guardians started to chat between themselves. Some sent her wary glares. Finally, their leader spoke. "Guardians will debate on this matter now, but you are no longer needed here. You shall be escorted to a place where you can rest and aw..." He didn't finish, because Zoe finally exploded. Silver light engulfed everything, accompanied by scream of rage. For a moment, everyone were blinded.

"I am done. I no longer care what will thou and thee comrades decide. I am leaving for earth to try and do something. Should thou decide to help, I shall await it in action, not by sitting with my hands crossed." She then ignored the lanterns who tried to escort her and walked to her chariot. Nobody dared to try and say anything. Their rings could pick up emotions radiating from her and they all came to the same conclusion: stopping her right now is the worst way to commit suicide. Jumping into a star is at least quick.

* * *

Artemis and Wally floated in darkness. Outside of them, there was nothing. Only blackness in all directions. They had no idea what was going on or what was happening to them. Well, Wally had some idea...

"Great. My soul was sucked from the body... again." He groaned. At least with the helmet of fate he had hope of being freed. Here, there was nothing. The only good thing was that he and Artemis were here together. _Find your own little spitfire, one who won't let you get away with nothin'._

It sounded almost like Kent Nelson's voice. _At least he is happy._

"Say... WHAT!?" Artemis screamed at him on top of her lungs. "Soul? Sucked from the body? We are dead? I can't be dead." She (or rather her spiritual self) started to hyperventilate.

Wally remembered how Kent explained it. "We aren't dead yet... I hope. Our souls were just forced from our bodies. We no longer control our actions."

"Souls... Since when do you believe in magic."

"I... I accepted it the night I thought you would die from this stupid necklace. It was in spur of a moment. I just... I could not think of a scientific way to save you and I was willing to accept everything. Kaldur said that my denial was about control, so guess I was willing to relent this little control I had if it meant saving you..." He knew he sounded dorky and cliche, but to his surprise she floated closer to him and pulled him into a kiss.

It lasted for unknown amount of time. Neither needed to breathe and there there was nobody to interrupt them. Finally, she broke it. "It's... I am moved. Now let's figure some way out of here."

"Yeah... probably not going to happen. I have no idea how to escape it. We can't even bargain with whoever is holding us. So unless you are sorceress supreme of earth and know how some spell to get us out..." He was suddenly interrupted by a chuckle. They both turned to see a boy younger than them standing on the darkness like it was solid. Or he was standing in the air. The boy was at best fourteen, with pitch black hair that almost melded with the surrounding and contrasting pale skin. He wore oversized bomber jacket, black cargo pants, black heavy combat boots and a shirt saying 'Back in Black' and a symbol of two torches. They noticed two black swords with some violet glimmer on them attached to the boy's belt.

"I don't know any sorceress who could do that, but maybe I can help you. Name's Nico Di'Angelo and I am the god of magic among other things." He said to them and smiled. "My father will want to speak with both of you."

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N Part two done, time for part three of the endgame. It's not over yet. I plan one more chapter after endgame to sum up everything and clear up some side-plots. And give some teaser of Hero's Darkness. Have a nice day and don't forget to smile.


	24. Endgame: Reckoning

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, Hero's Darkness is the working title of the sequel to this story. But I will not be writing it at least until November if my publication plan works.

* * *

_"Wh-What do you mean return. I died."_

_"Indeed. But you weren't judged yet. Gods can't enter the sealed world just like that. Yet, there exist some... loopholes to this rule. I need you to..._

_For the next half an hour, Hades explained certain things to Secret. Finally, she thought about it for a moment._

_"But... Are you sure I will be able to become normal again?"_

_"It remains to be seen. It isn't exactly something that happens often. Or ever. I can promise that you will always have a place at Elysium, provided you fulfill your end of a deal."_

_Both Persephone and Nico remained silent for the whole ordeal. Their expressions didn't even change. Those who did not know better could think that they are indeed mother and son and not step-mother and step-son._

_Secret gave it some more thought. "I agree."_

* * *

**Liverpool**   
**November 13, 00:16**

When Hades offered her the deal, she did not expect the task to be so hard. When she was just a kid, she loved to watch all this superheroes fight bad guys. Now she was supposed to help dispose of one of the greatest bad guys in the history. But in the cartoons finding villain always seemed so simple. Just go to a bar, ask for him and he will come. Or ask some thugs who will cower in fear and point you to him. Real life was much harder.

Secret was merely ten. She had no way of going to the bar and common thugs had no knowledge where to find who she was looking for. The man commonly known just as 'Wizard'. It was part of the greater plan and Hades with his son chose him for it. She was just supposed to do the hard part of finding him and doing the deed. That's why she found herself in a gloomy bar in liverpool. She was still dressed like the way she died, with eerie aura surrounding her. The whole place seemed empty except for a bartender who had his back turned and one other man sitting by the counter with half-empty bottle of whiskey. He was smoking even though next to him was a sign 'No smoking in the bar', but since the owner didn't mind she figured they must be friends or something. Secret walked to the man and pulled his duster to get his attention.

"Mister Constantine? May I have a word?"

John Constantine, in some circles known as Hellblazer or just prick, was an experienced magician. He could feel the aura of death approach him, but he did not expect a prepubescent girl in white dress and white hairband. "Who in the bloody hell are you, girl?"

Secret was really nervous. Even in life, she was always a shy one. Her only friend was her older brother. At least until he lost his mind and killed her. "Secret!" She blurted without control. It was kinda an instinct, to answer all question with that word. Nico called it... 'her ghostly quirk'. Apparently, some spirits had it after death. It was still better than more violent alternative: Obsession. She was not keen on forever trying to kill her brother or haunt her place of life just because she was restless.

"Huh?" Constantine was confused. He tried to get a grip on this girl and when he opened his 'third eye' he almost fell from the stool. "You are a bloody ghost."

"S-Sorry sir. I-I meant that my name is Secret. Not like I don't tell you. It's just what I am called. Secret." She babbled for a moment. _Get it together. You are here to get it done with and hopefully return to normal..._

"Listen girl. I don't know what happened to you that you can't have eternal peace or whatever bullshit, but I am too sober to deal with it. Come back in three hours and I will try to send you on your way." John was in no mood to do anything. He just learned his sister died, killed by a demon to get back at him.

"Mister. I am here as a messenger from Hades." She gathered herself.

"Huh? Bloody hell. What are you talking about?"

"The lord of the dead wants to ask you for a favor. I need to find a man known as 'wizard'. I was hoping you might help me." This man was slightly too intimidating. There was this aura of 'I don't care whether I live or die'.

"And what might Hady offer me, huh? It's not like the old guy can protect me from damnation." Constantine was too skeptical.

Secret closed her eyes for a moment and looked like she tried hard to concentrate on something. After she opened them again, she was far more confident. "He asked me to tell you one name: Cheryl."

In an instant, John dropped his bottle. "What?"

"He says that he is willing to give her to you in exchange for help."

"Bullshit. Hades never releases souls. He has stick too deep into his ass to even slightly bend rules. Everyone knows it."

"It is not the case here. He is looking at the bigger picture. Sir, if you are unwilling to help, I will understand and take this matter to someone else."

"Bloody hell I am interested." All the caution was thrown out of the window. John was willing to risk many things if it meant fixing this mistake of his. It was worst decision ever to go and see his sister. Especially knowing that demons were after him. But how could he know that they would kill her just to spite him.

"Good. Sir, I need you to find and help subdue William I. Zard, also known as Wizard."

"That's it? He is in Belle Reve with the other idiots who separated the worlds of Adult and children a while back." Hellblazer almost chuckled at how easy the task was. "Now about my sister."

Secret closed her eyes and concentrated once more. This time, it was far shorter. She smiled and opened her eyes. "Your sister will return soon, once my ordeal is sorted. Be patient. He told me to thank you for the cooperation."

* * *

**Belle Reve  
November 13, 0:33**

Secret entered the prison without any problem. Among her powers were mist transformation and shadow-travel. She slipped through all the guard patrols and walked into the Warder office without any problem. She was so excited. It was like this spy cartoon she watched, about a girl who became a spy and saved the world, except she actually had superpowers! Silently, she walked to the computer and opened the catalog with files regarding the prisoners. Wizard was apparently in solitary cell because of his magical power. The problem? It was warded against most magic (courtesy of Zatara).

"Uh... Maybe..." She pressed another button and noticed that the doors to the cell opened. She panicked and in a puff! of smokey mist she disappeared from the office. Secret found herself face-to-face with William I. Zard.

"Huh. Who are you?"

"Um... Are you mister Zard?" Secret asked, even is she knew the truth.

"Why yes my child. I am indeed Lord William Zard the second. Now what would a lost spirit like you want from me?" Obviously, he already knew that the girl was a ghost. Aura of death around her was unmistakable.

"I am the messenger of the god of Magic. I came to say you..." Suddenly, her eyes glowed deep purple and the aura of death flared. Zard tried to blast her, but he was too slow. She rose her hand and purple beam hit him. " _ **Mage vilem abierunt felis veniam familiaribus. Qui venturus est in mundum ut efferant universa serve Dei Magia. Non erit alligatus, quem tandem abutere in virtute. Quaeque tua est pietas, ut ne mors custodiebantur per ipsum**_ " _**[1]** _In an instant, purple smoke enveloped the sorcerer and when it died down, in his place stood a Persian cat. He was mostly black with gray sideburns and golden outline of his right eye. Secret pulled out a silver collar from a hidden pocket and put in his neck. There was a symbol emblazoned on it: A skull and two burning torches.

Suddenly, both cat and the god shimmered and disappeared just as guards in tactical gear rushed to this wing. They looked around, only to find empty solitary cell and no traces of convict.

* * *

Wally and Artemis decided to follow the strange teen. They seemed to recall someone like that from mythology, but the details couldn't just come to them. It wasn't like it could turn much worse than that anyway. They were already two souls floating in the void.

"At least we are together." Wally grabbed Artemis' hand to make sure she is there.

"So cute I almost want to go and shoot someone for balance." Nico groaned. "You act like some son of Aphrodite. I am not in a mood for this. Now hurry up. I must lead you out of the void before we can properly get to my father's palace."

After floating for a bit two heroes and a god found themselves stopped by some invisible force. Or maybe visible, but in the same color as everything else here: black. Wally was about to ask what to do now when Nico pulled one of his swords and slashed. Both heroes felt a brief pain all over their bodies before light enveloped them and caused temporal blindness.

Once their sight returned, they found themselves in a giant throne room. They boy who escorted them was now sitting on a throne next to a middle-aged man in black dress. He had a jagged crown formed from blue flames on his head and held a bident with a set of keys attached to it. His face was deathly pale, which contrasted with shoulder-long black hair of his. Further to the right there was a beautiful woman with straight black hair that reached to the middle of her chest and dress in color of blood. She also wore a crown on her head.

They noticed that besides them, there was one more man in the room. He held a giant scythe, but it wasn't the most prominent feature. More important part were his giant black wings. He had skin in color on teakwood, which was almost all on display since the only thing he wore was a piece of black fabric that covered him from belt to mid-tights. When he spoke, he sounded both young and old at the same time. he gave the feeling of timelessness. "You stand before the court of King Hades. State the business which brings souls before his majesty."

"Uh... I... We..." Wally didn't know what to say. This was all too weird and strange. There was no way really to explain what has happening with science. He looked around and made a mistake of looking behind him, where he saw over a thousand... souls. Semi-immaterial beings crowded in the gianat hall, peacefully awaiting their turn to approach the king. Not even he could deny it. It was magic or some higher power. To get some assurance he strengthened his grip on Artemis' hand. He was glad when she sent a 'pulse', reminding him that she is still by his side.

"We were told that his Majesty wanted to speak with us." Artemis took over from Wally. She could see his mind trying and failing to comprehend it all. It was strange for her too. It was one thing to accept magic is real and completely another to stand before king of the afterlife.

"Indeed. I asked my son to bring you here. For some time we, gods, knew that Ares is meddling in your world, but my brother decided to ignore it. He is too paranoid with the prophecy that might foreshadow his demise. I believe you've met little miss Sandsmark. Poseidon saved her, at the same time trying to help his son. But I am also not going to stand idle while a whole world falls to this stupid, overconfident son of my brother." While at first Hades tone was mostly calm, by the end he was furious. It was clear he tried to keep himself in check. "I devised a plan to add my own figures to the chessboard." He smiled and it was not a pleasant smile, but it wasn't a vile one either.

"With all due respect... but why do you even care about the world of living? I mean you are the king of the dead. Don't you want more subjects?" Wally asked. He was still afraid of the man, but his curiosity overpowered other feelings.

"Look behind you. all of them died only recently. I do not need help with getting more subjects. Underworld is one of several places where soul can go after death and it is connected to every other world in existence. I have more subjects than any other Old God ever. I do not need Ares to send me more." He frowned at the question, but was not angry. It looked as if he expected it. "Now, you two are technically dead. Ares forcefully ripped your souls from the bodies and put them in his personal demi-plane as a trophies."

Hades paused and Nico spoke instead. "It was extremely stupid of you to bargain with him. You forfeit your afterlife. He would take your souls for himself anyway after he was done with you or made you into his harbingers of war. Now you are traitors of your own kind. I would not be surprised if they did not accept you back."

Artemis and Wally immediately tried to defend their decision. "I did it to save him/protect her!" they both said at the same time. Nico just slowly shook his head.

"And that is why I really hate Eros and Aphrodite." Seeing his step-mother send him amused glare he continued. "We will not discuss my love-life in front of them mom. Please." Persephone had a teasing smile, but Hades spoke before his wife could embarrass his son more.

"Because in the end you tried to defile him and were willing to sacrifice yourself to save the world, I can allow you a pass into the Fields of Asphodelus, instead of eternity in the fields of punishment. Treason is one of the worst faults, which can not be treated lightly."

"Wait. So you just saved us so you could punish us?" Wally was angry. He blurted this before realizing he back-talked the god of underworld who was right now his ultimate superior.

Persephone was smiling at him. "I like this one. He is feisty one." This earned a collective chuckle from the gods and even Artemis smiled. The queen continued. "But to answer your question, no. You are still alive and your bodies belong to Ares, so we cannot stop you. But we want to give you a choice. You can go away, never to return and allow Nico to destroy your current bodies, or fight for the future."

Artemis and Wally looked at one another. "What do you mean by go away?" She finally asked.

"You know that there is more than one alternate reality. We can offer you safe passage there, but no way of returning."

"And the catch." Wally asked. "I am more than certain there is one. Percy told me that this is almost exactly how he got tricked. A promise of peace in exchange he never returned."

"That world is... beyond the Source Wall." Nico finally relented. "It means that we have no way of knowing where you are going. It can be anywhere and anything."

Hades picked up from where his son stopped. "In the essence, even we don't know where you are going, only that this is earth of some sort. And that is the only solution for you to survive the death of your previous bodies. The alternative is that you stay to fight for the control over your bodies and most likely die. Ares is too powerful for anyone except the big three to fight. And I cannot enter your world."

"So our choice is to go back and die trying to return to our bodies or start a completely new life on entirely different world which no one knows of?" Wally summed it up. "What do you think babe?"

"We would need to give up our families, our friends and everything."

"We would still have each other, Right?" Wally sent questioning look to the ruling family. Hades nodded. "I already almost died once and you brought me back. It's because of me that now you are in this situation. Whatever you choose, I will follow." He finally stated. Artemis looked him deep in the eyes.

"I... I choose..."

* * *

**Qurac**   
**November 15, 14:45**

Percy woke up with a killed headache. The last few hours before he passed out were hazy. He could not exactly recall everything. He knew that he traveled to Qurac to gather some info, but somehow he ended up in some bed, with his armor off and wearing his backup mask. He tried to stand up, but sharp pain went through his back. He could feel the wound somewhere around his right shoulder blade. He groaned and laid back. Next to his bed was his trident and what was left of the previous mask. The beauty of the magic was that it would fix itself soon enough.

After two minutes pain was mostly gone, so Percy tried again. This time he made sure not to put any pressure on his right hand. It worked and he was able to stand up. He could feel his legs being wobbly and the pain in his arm and shoulder was still strong, but he could managed. He tried to grab his trident, but it shocked him. It was not as strong as he'd seen some others suffer. It was more of a friendly warning.

"Da Hades?" He shouted. At that moment the doors to his room opened and Tula, Garth and Kaldur squished inside. Percy could also see the rest of the team outside, but this three were the closest to him. Through the last months, he forged a kind of bond with them. They could relate to his feeling of being 'fish out of the water' in this world. They also shared the same love for things like swimming and surprisingly, old ships. It was something Percy never knew he liked until Garth took him to explore a sunken Spanish galleon south-east of long island. He actually could feel the ship calling to him when he walked through the deck. The ship, even underwater and abandoned for centuries, knew the prince of the seas when he walked on it. The eerie beauty of barely lit chambers and half-destroyed decorations appealed to Percy so much that he went exploring this kind of vessels quite often with his atlantean friends.

"Percy! You are awake!" Tula cheered. Her voice was rather high-pitched and made his head ring for a moment, but he quickly got accustomed to hearing it.

"Yes. But what are you guys doing here? Weren't you supposed to be doing some other mission for captain Atom?" He inquired.

"Uh... Funny thing. You've been asleep for a whole day..." Garth smiled sheepishly at him. Percy's eyes widened at the statement.

"What? What is the situation on the front? Do you know anything about Ares? Did UN agreed to send help?" He bombarded them with questions.

"It might be best for you to sit down." Kaldur pointed to the bed.

"That bad?"

"The United Nations Headquaters were attacked. Apparently Zoe Nightshade threw a temper tantrum at the comittee, who then fought between themselves. It all ended with both Amazons and United States preparing for war, more and more League members being drafted into their respective military and Zoe being wanted criminal. They did not believe in Ares and now the world is blaming Themyscira for trying to create conflict to swipe more lands unto their rule. And Superman died in battle against ultimate monster." Kaldur explained shortly. At the last part everyone got gloomy. Percy gritted his teeth.

"I sure hope Zoe was not arrested. I would hate to have to break her out. And break few jaws on my way in and out." His voice was a mix between amusement and anger. A dangerous combination, especially with anger dominating.

"She is okay. Nobody there actually dared to touch her." Kaldur tried to clam Percy.

"Well, actually one did." Robin, who also sneaked inside the room smiled and showed them a photo of corridor with at least a dozen guards pinned to the walls with silver arrows. "She got angry and decided to make a show. There is also this." He showed them another video, this time with her taking the doors out of the frame and then shattering them into tiny splinters just by clutching her hands.

"Remind me not to get on her bad side." Garth joked.

"Welp, they asked for it." Percy just chuckled. He then tried to remember what happened before he passed out. Slowly, the memories of his fight with Ares returned. How he battled with the war god and got served, only to shadow travel after insulting his enemy. "We might have bigger problem. There is more to Ares. His new host... It is not human." This earned a questioning look from the others.

"An atlantean then? Or Amazon?"

"Worse. A full-fledged kryptonian. The kind with laser eyes and flying. Add super strength and invulnerability." He explained, earning a grasp.

A sharp pain reminded him about the wound in his shoulder. He pulled a vial of nectar from his belt and was about to drink when suddenly Tula screamed and tackled him. Three things surprised him. One: her actions. Two: The fact that she tore the vial from his hand and tossed it at the wall. Three: she was strong enough to do this.

"What in Hades?! What was that about Tula." He screamed at her.

"I... I don't know. I just felt this vial boil. Magic energy from it was volatile and aggressive. Like it was trying to escape you. I... I don't know how to explain it, but it felt like it was going to attack you. I know it might sound stupid..." She looked guilty. Percy wanted to apologize for yelling at her, but Zatanna started talking first.

"Actually, it is not. I can feel the change in Percy's aura. This aura of power that always accompanied him... It is gone."

"The smell of the sea is also gone." Conner added. They all (including Percy) were starting to get worried. Demigod tried to call some water to himself, but he only felt an empty pulling in his gut. Nothing happened. He pulled a bottle of water from his belt, opened it and tried to manipulate it's content, but nothing happened. In last desperate attempt he poured it over his head. In dismay he felt himself get wet even if all his focus was on not getting wet.

"Guys... I think we might have a problem."

"I think we might have a bigger problem." Robin spoke before pointing through the window. Several drones were flying at them. Immediately the heroes run away from the room onto the lower levels. A machinegun series went through the house, shattering the windows and making holes in the walls. At least some of the heroes would be dead if not for Tula. Thinking fast, she formed a wall of water in front of them, stopping the bullets. The downside was that she destroyed all the plumbing in the house, but it was still better than the alternative. There was no point in hiding inside, so they all went outside. Percy activated his outfit, which luckily was fixed with little belt magic. The hunter-seeker drones fired a barrage of missiles, but M'gann redirected them back at the attackers. Five out of the six attacking drones were disposed of. Superboy leaped in the air and punched through last one, but not before it fired another missile. M'gann tried to destroy it in the air, but only managed to make it instead hit the barn, which was next to them.

With the threat disposed, they sighted. It was only until panicked Marie Logan run toward them. "Has anyone seen Garfield?! Please tell me he is alright!" She practically screamed at them. It was clear she deeply cared about her son. They looked around, but couldn't see anyone. That was until M'gann scanned for his brain activity. In distress she flew close to the barn. The building was completely obliterated, but the surrounding area was mostly undamaged if you do not count the destroyed planks and some broken medical equipment laying around. She lifted one of the larger planks with her telekinesis and moved a young boy from under it. He was unconscious and had several wounds. Immediately, she handed him to Superboy who moved him inside. Others followed through, but Percy stopped them.

"It's not over." He pointed to the savanna in front of them. At least two dozen transport cars pulled nearby, assisted by several tanks. They were all very old-fashined, probably remembering Second World War or even the Great War. Hundreds of skeletal soldiers flooded the plain in front of them.

"We are so dead..." Miss Logan moaned. Just then 'Back in Black' by AC/DC started playing. Out of the shadow cast by now decamouflaged bioship walked a young boy. He looked thirteen, maybe fourteen, with pitch black hair that almost melded with the surrounding and contrasting pale skin. He wore oversized bomber jacket, black cargo pants, black heavy combat boots and a shirt saying 'Back in Black' and a symbol of two torches. They noticed two black swords with some violet glimmer on them attached to the boy's belt.

"Neeks?" Percy screamed in mixture of happiness and befuddlement.

"Just a moment Perce." He smiled and turned to the army. 'Back in black' was now on full volume. He grabbed his two swords and they immediately came alit with green flames. His eyes had been in color of obsidian a moment ago, but they also became two balls of emerald fire. "I must dispose of the trash." He turned to the armies and pointed one of his swords. Almost immediately, a large crack opened in the middle of the army, separating it in two. From there, an army of spirits flew out. They looked like normal soldiers, expect they were transparent and all green in the same color as the fire he commanded. The two armies clashed with one another. It was truly magnificent: ghost fighting skeletons. At least it was not bloody. Nico himself was just standing there, shooting volleys of green fire at the armies. Each time one of his attacks connected, a whole group of Ares' warriors were immolated. At first he focused on tanks, but once they were gone he turned his wrath to common soldiers. It was maybe five minutes when almost all of the army was gone. Having no more enemies, the spirits then dissolved. Nico then plunged his sword in the ground and green flames errupted, traveling in arc. Anything of godly origin that was touched by it suddenly faded like it was never there while natural life and other such stuff was left alone. There was even one desert fox on the battlefield and he was completely unharmed by this.

"Okay. Now we can talk." He turned to the stunned group of heroes.

"Dude." Percy walked to him. Nico offered him a hand and percy grabbed it in roman-style handshake before pulling him into a hug. "Oh man I missed you." The others didn't see him smile this wide since the day... he never smiled this widely with them.

"Let. Me. Go." Nico managed to say through the anger. He hated the physical touch. His personal space was just that. Personal. Percy broke away, but he was still smiling. "I am glad to see you as well." He smiled weakly before stumbling and almost falling. Luckily, the son of Poseidon caught him.

"sorry. Still adjusting to this. And my stupid familiar is _not here!_ " He said last words with venom. As on Que a Persian cat walked to them from the shadows and meowed something. Nico scowled. "I don't care if suddenly some aristocratic cat came your way. You are not here to look for a mate." He grumbled before stumbling once more. "Great. My anchor is weaker than I expected. Like I always said... 'With great power comes great need to take a nap'. Sorry guys. I hoped to be more help." He said before falling asleep in Percy's arms.

"Can someone explain me what was that about...?" Zatanna in awe at the power this boy showed. He was supposedly her age and yet there was this aura of power around him. If she was to guess, Percy in his prime was still weaker than him. _And he is quite handsome..._ She thought to herself, forgetting the mind link was still on and she was sending her to the entire team. Robin scowled at that and Tula gave her a teasing smile. Suddenly, they heard another voice on the mind link. " _Not interested. Not stop with it and let me sleep._ " They all shrugged at the blushing Zatanna and returned to the main building.

Back at the house, M'gann just finished blood transfusion. They pressed play on TV, but instead on the news came an episode of 'Hello Megan!'. Robin, Conner, Kaldur, Tula and Garth watched in utter shock. The only one calm about it was Percy. M'gann tried to stop it as fast as possible, but she couldn't. Finally, Percy took mercy on her and just turned the player off.

"That was... You... That's why you look like her..." Garth connected the dots.

"Wait. You guys really didn't catch on it?" Percy chuckled. "I mean I told you I bought a full set of old VHS, including complete 'Hello Megan!'."

"Yeah, but we thought it was your excuse to take Zoe out on a date or something." Tula teased.

"Seriously? How long do you think we've been dating?" Percy asked.

"Uh... Since the 'Injustice League'?" Robin smiled mischievously.

"It's a thing only since Halloween... Okay. Doesn't matter." Inside, Percy was smiling that he diverted the talk from embarrassed M'gann. He turned the TV to media channel. They were repeating the video of Superman's fight. Demigod watched how two powerhouses clashed and destroyed half of the city. Then, suddenly, in the middle of the fight appeared a the presenter back in the studio.

"Last minute: An unknown man just appeared in the middle of battle scene between Superman and Doomsday. While the police had it all under lockdown until the recovery of the bodies, the man somehow managed to with a swipe of his hand disable all of the officers." The screen changed to show a video from nearby a crater. Percy instantly recognized him. It was Ares. He indeed only once swiped his hand at the policemen who tried to stop him and they all fell onto the ground, probably dead. The video continued with him walking down toward the body of superman, but he turned last moment and instead walked to doomsday. He touched the beast and it slowly turned into red particles and flowed into him. Suddenly, his whole body almost doubled in muscle mass and he could see his fiery eyes turn even more alien. He then flew up in the air before he spoke so loud that even with the distance between him and the camera they could record it perfectly.

"I am Ares, the god of war. When I returned to this world, I met stagnation and false sense of security. I was ready to leave until now. The war amazons started in my name is not my doing, but it is neccessery. Soon, the earth will face threats bigger than petty conflicts between nations. I can give my blessing to one nation, If they can conquer all others! He declared before sending a red wave in all directions. In a matter of seconds it reached the Animal Sancturaly. Suddenly, the whole team was ready to jump at each other. Only Superboy and Percy seemed unaffected.

Atlanteans started to demand their surrender. Aqualad as a team leader declared that they are all now part of Atlantis military. Miss Martian, against her usually rather peaceful nature started screaming at them how martians were superior in all ways. Robin and Zatanna were ready to jump into battle to protect their home country, but found themselves in the minority and tremendously outgunned. Even if he was trained by Batman and she was a natural at magic, three Atlanteans and a martian were too much. Strangely, Percy and Conner didn't feel anything. It was mostly because the later did not have a home country. He was a genomorph. His race was an artificially created for specific purpose and he didn't feel connection to any specific land. The former had his real home country in another world and knew he had no way of fighting for it. Or at least that was what he kept repeating himself to not be affected by the spell.

The media were going wild. All across the world people were demanding war. Already several countries declared war, but luckily long-range nuclear shields were in power. But nuclear winter was still a matter of hours, days at best. This had to be stopped. Just then, an arrow flew through the window and hit Robin in the arm. He fell on the ground. Then, another few came and disposed of the rest of the team. They were all unconscious. Artemis walked inside.

"Sorry it took me so long. I was out on the walk with Wally when this wave suddenly passed through us. He attacked me before running off. Something about joining the military."

"How are you not affected?" Conner asked. She just smiled.

"I am half-american half-Vietnamese and I also have an Italian citizenship. Don't ask." She quickly added. "Point is, my home countries all all around the world."

"Good. We must still get to the Metropolis. Fast. Ares is still there. He will want to gloat at the destruction he caused." Percy started to give orders. He picked Nico and Robin while leaving the rest to Conner. They moved them inside the Bio-ship and took off.

* * *

**Metropolis**   
**November 15, 8:59**

They no longer had to care about detection. Speed was of the essence, so Conner took them into the outer atmosphere and in minutes they were already in the large city. Percy wanted to walk out of the ship, but Superboy stopped him.

"How exactly do you intend on fighting Ares without your powers? You are gonna die." He was usually a man of few words, but Percy could hear a genuine distress.

"I have a plan. He pulled the box of pills containing godly essence. He was about to open it when an arrow hit him in the hand, piercing it. The pain made him drop the box. It opened and made pills scatter. "What the Hades?" He screamed. There stood Artemis with his bow drawn, but before she could say anything a green-flaming blade pierced her chest. Percy and Conner watched in horror as their friend's lifeless body fell down. Nico removed the head with one swift motion of his sword.

"You... You murdered her!" Conner screamed. He wanted to lunge at Nico, but felt himself frozen in place. Nico stumbled, using his sword as a cane to not fall.

"I saved you both. This was not Artemis. Her soul is long since gone. This was just a mere puppet under the control of Ares. He took the star necklace from her neck and crushed it in his hand. A burnt-red mist left his hand and dispersed in the air.

"Great. He knows we are here." Percy groaned.

" **Indeed Punk."** A new voice joined the conversation. Ares was there with his swords draws. A quick flick of his hand sent the ship tumbling away, down the street. Percy was the only one left. He tried to pick up the pills, but Ares in an instant covered the distance and punched him. He fell on the ground. Percy still tried to crawl to the box, but before his hand could reach the closest essence, Ares crushed the gift from gods under his metal boot. " **No gods can help you now."**

He rose his blade, ready to plunge it right through his chest when something slammed into him. Ares looked up to see Conner standing there. This momentary distraction allowed Percy to extend his hand toward the rest of the pills. He prayed to gods for help. Suddenly, a pill floated to him. It was blue with tiny symbol of trident on it. It smashed right into where his heart was and light-blue glow enveloped him.

* * *

Percy found himself on Montauk beach. He could hear the calming sound of the wind blowing from the sea and waves clashing against the sand. It was evening and sun was about to set.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" He heard his father's voice. Turning around, he saw him. His father had a hawaian shirt and the same messy beard as always. In his hand was the trident he 'gifted' Percy.

It was awkward. Percy had no idea how to react. On one hand, he was still angry with what happened. On the other hand, he was happy to see his father once more. Finally he settled on smiling awkwardly.

"I see you are still angry. Please, forgive what we did. It was the only way so you did not end up as Zeus' toy soldier."

"I am angry, but not because of this, but because you lied. You promised me peace and yet look where I am: about to die at the hands of the god of _war_!" He scowled at his father.

"I know son. I've beaten myself over it for months. I hoped to at least aid you a bit. I gave you my trident and had Hephaestus make this belt." He looked so sad that Percy actually felt guilty for a moment. Then a pain in his hand reminded him why he was angry in the first place.

"While we talk, my friends might be dying out there. I am sorry, but we must cut this talk short." He could feel the distress of the situation. Conner was practically alone against Ares who had power of ten Superman and Doomsday. He didn't know what this Doomsday was, but it must have been something incredibly powerful.

"I know. But right now time is slowed. It is all happening at the speed in which your brain can process things. Ares is too strong for anyone to beat. He would be able to even even with me. Even if I gave you all your power back, you would die."

"then what?!" Percy screamed. "I can't let my friends die. I won't! Even if it kills me."

"There is another solution. I am fading my son." Percy froze, hearing this words. "All gods are slowly fading. We have maybe two centuries before we all fade. Have you wondered why so many wars happened in such a short notice when in the past it was centuries between them? Because all of the Old Gods are slowly fading into nothingness. We cling to our children, to this little worship that remains, to the flame of the west, but we will all be gone sooner or later. Ask Zoe to explain it all to you."

"So what? You want to dump all your power on me?" Percy asked.

"No. It would only make you fade soon too. But there is a way. There are... aliens. They evolved on planets which served as a magnet for the essence of faded gods. They to some extend living embodiment of universal ideas. I can... artificially make you into one. This 'New Gods' are different from us, the Old Gods with the fact that while We get power from certain specific idea across all realities, they take strength from one broad idea in one reality. You would become the New God of oceans. The blessings you received would remain, but your connection to sea would... change. I don't know how, but I am sure you will know the difference."

"But... That would mean I would be immortal?"

"Sadly yes. But it is the only way." Poseidon explained. Percy was about to protest, but his father continued. "Zoe is a New Goddess too. Don't be rash in your decision."

Percy pondered the question for a moment. It was a decision that would change his life forever. If he refused, he would have to find another way, but probably he would either die before he managed or it would cost him many friends. A sacrifice he was not willing to make. "I will do it. I guess it's my only way to save everyone."

"I am sorry it had to go this way. I can only say that I am really proud of you my son. You are better than all of us ever will..." Poseidon said the last words as his body slowly turned into empty space. Percy could notice a single tear falling from his eye.

* * *

He opened his eyes to see that he was floating above the earth. His trident was in his hand and he had his armor on. All the wounds on his body healed perfectly. He really did feel different. the nearby ocean was calling to him. He could hear it's cry. It was a cry of submission. The water all around him was telling him that it was to his disposition. That it would follow his command. He could also feel the slight movement of tectonic plates. He now knew that he could command this force too. He noticed that he was not surrounded by a hurricane. At the same time, the currents in the air were almost visible to him. Ares flew to him.

" **So you got your powers back. Shame. I was hoping to end you quick, Punk. Now, I will make you suffer."** Ares flew at Percy, but he dodged and slashed with his trident. His mind was racing. He instinctively knew how to use all his powers. It was like he was born with them. He also knew what idea he now embodied: natural cataclysm. Water was at his command to bring tsunamis or to shape rocks or follow him in whatever he needed. The tremors of earth would bring down those, who wronged him. The wind would cut and push and crash what he needed. All of this was at his command.

The slash did nothing to pierce Ares. His armor was too resistant. " **Don't give yourself hope punk. I am much stronger than you. _"_** The god of war then flew at hypersonic speed back at Percy and slammed into him. The New God couldn't avoid it so he took it at the face value. The clash was followed by rapid series of super-strong punched into his gut. If he was a normal demigod, his bones would long since have been shattered. But it was not the case. New body could withstand this. It still hurt and Percy could feel brusies forming, but he lived for now. While they were still in the air, he reached to the water. Immediately, it responded. Water rose from the bay and smashed int the city. He willed it to not damage anything but his opponent. A giant wave traveled through the city before it surrounded Percy and Ares. They were then both pulled back into the bay.

While normally the super-powered god of war would not have troubles escaping, this time he felt like fighting the whole ocean. He was hanging in the middle of ocean, city far in the distance. Suddenly, Percy smashed into him. His trident managed to make a large dent in his armor and cause a part of it to fall. Before Ares could react, the New God was gone. It was his usual tactic. Hit and swim away. Like a shark toying with it's prey. This repeated several more times. Always striking from somewhere behind him. With all his power, the god of war could not react. It was as if ocean itself slowed him and accelerated the infuriating hero. Ares was fast enough to break ten times the speed of sound and strong enough to lift entire cities. Yet, he was being defeated by some random sea spawn. He would not allow it. His eyes flashed red and a beam of white-hot fire emerged from under the helmet. The water all around him started to evaporate. Percy tired to slash him once more, but the water around Ares was too hot. He couldn't cool fast enough to strike him. Instead, he willed the remaining water to toss the god of war in the air.

Ares found himself propelled with incredible speed. Ocean expelled him like he was an intruder. Soon, Percy followed and smashed into him in the air. The Old and New Gods met each other in the air. " **What do you hope to achieve, seaspawn? I am unbeatable. The whole world is in conflict. I can surpass even my father now. You cannot hope to defeat me.** "

"You might be the all-powerful god of war, but a wise man once said 'there is always a bigger fish'. I am not a mere 'seaspawn'. I am Perseus Jackson, the New God of the Water, the Earthshaker, the Stormbringer, the King of the Oceans, the Ruler of Depth, the heir of Poseidon. I am the bane of Minotaur, the slayer of Medusa, Nemean Lion and thousands of other monsters. I am the vanquisher of Kronos, The vanquisher of Gaia, the Vanquisher of Giants. **I survived Labyrinth. I escaped Tartarus, I am the freaking boyfriend of Zoe Nightshade. My name is Perseus Jackson and I am Neptune, the hero who will defeat Ares."** Unknowingly his speech was being transmitted to every television in the world. Ares wanted his triumph to be admired by all, but now he lost faith. With each word, Percy was being encased by giant form of water, mimicking his form. At the same time, the trident he held was now in the hand of giant water avatar. Around him, hurricane raged and thunder cracked. Hail, rain and snow all obscured the vision. This display of power was incredible and Ares could sense the essence of Poseidon sipping from him. The old Barnacle-beard poured all of his power into the boy. He didn't have a fraction of Poseidon's power. He had it all and more. The trident gathered the redundant magic in the air. Ares could even feel some of it being drained from him.

Percy swiped his giant trident. Ares tried to escape, but the hurricane slowed him. The giant blade connected with him and sent him flying like a baseball ball. Percy, still in the avatar, followed him. He caught up with him somewhere in arctic. Ares was already on his feet, standing. Suddenly, several water tendrils exploded from under water and enveloped him. He was no longer able to move. All the strength of Ultimate Kryptonian combined with Doomsday was not enough. He was not fighting against ice. He was fighting against Perseus' will. And that was the battle he could not win. The avatar knelled and grabbed Ares' helmet between two fingers before pulling it off of him. It tried to resist, but he was able to still tear it away.

Percy expected this was enough to actually banish Ares. To his surprise, the god of war was still there. Under the helmet was face of superman, but much more pale, in almost gray coloration. His eyes were burnt red color and his hair was longer than Superman. the resemblance was still undeniable. He smiled at him. It served as enough of a distraction that Ares could break the ice chains and dash at Percy. He ripped him from the giant watery-man and continuously punched him. they crashed in some frozen wasteland of Greenland. Percy was laying on the ground, bleeding from his nose. " **I will not be denied"** *a quick series of punches* " **My eternal life"** *crushing his rib-cage with his boot* " **by some common punk."** *kick in the balls* " **I am Ares, the god of war. This world belongs to me. No matter who you are, you are not going to stop me! I am unbeatable."** Ares rose his hand to punch Percy, but suddenly the ice around them melted and the water encased the hero, healing any wounds. Once he was back at the full strength, he called his trident.

"For the last time." Percy lunged at Ares. He wanted to avoid it, but the New God predicted it and with the use of wind changed the point of impact of his trident. The sharp prong his like under his armhole, cutting him in between armor. " **I!"** Percy then swiped his trident low and undercut the Old God, making him fall. " **DON'T!"** He then plunged the trident right where his armor ended and his helmet was supposed to start. Two outer prongs only grazed his neck, but the middle passed right through it. Ichor poured from the god and he was immobilized. " **CARE!"** With great strength he slashed and decapitated the self-proclaimed 'unbeatable'.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And there you go. Endgame finished. The last chapter will be epilogue with a prolonged Author note about the future. I hope to get it before 8th of February so that I can say that the whole story was finished in three months.
> 
> Percy was that strong only because Poseidon poured all his remaining essence into him. After the fight it will gradually disperse and return to the worlds it was pulled from, probably merging with Triton or finding a good host. It was like when after Pan died Grover could use the power, but some of it's power left him.
> 
> [1] Vile mage be gone, come the cat familiar. Magic serve the god in coming to world so empty. Bound you be, who abuse the power. May your loyalty be guarded by Death himself


	25. Fallout

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N Sorry for delay. I rewrote it like seven times before I was remotely content. I still believe this could be better, but alas.

_His eyes were burnt red color and his hair was longer than Superman. the resemblance was still undeniable. He smiled at him. It served as enough of a distraction that Ares could break the ice chains and dash at Percy. He ripped him from the giant watery-man and continuously punched him. they crashed in some frozen wasteland of Greenland. Percy was laying on the ground, bleeding from his nose. " **I will not be denied** " *a quick series of punches* " **My eternal life** " *crushing his rib-cage with his boot* " **by some common punk.** " *kick in the balls* " **I am Ares, the god of war. This world belongs to me. No matter who you are, you are not going to stop me! I am unbeatable.** " Ares rose his hand to punch Percy, but suddenly the ice around them melted and the water encased the hero, healing any wounds. Once he was back at the full strength, he called his trident._

_"For the last time." Percy lunged at Ares. He wanted to avoid it, but the New God predicted it and with the use of wind changed the point of impact of his trident. The sharp prong his like under his armhole, cutting him in between armor. " **I!** " Percy then swiped his trident low and undercut the Old God, making him fall. " **DON'T!** " He then plunged the trident right where his armor ended and his helmet was supposed to start. Two outer prongs only grazed his neck, but the middle passed right through it. Ichor poured from the god and he was immobilized. " **CARE!** " With great strength he slashed and decapitated the self-proclaimed 'unbeatable'._

* * *

He was dead. Ares' body laid there for a moment before it started to turn into golden dust, which was immediately scattered by the wind. The image was truly beautiful if not that it was so gross. Soon the only reminder of corrupted War god was a puddle of frozen Ichor and his helmet. Percy sighted and decided to walk back home. Wind and snow around him were no bother to him now, but it was still a long way to Jump City and he didn't really know where to go. During his battle he lost track of his location.

"Great. How am I supposed to get home now?" He moaned before pulling out his mobile phone, only to find it broken beyond usefulness. "I can't even blame this on fates. Seems my luck doesn't get better. Guess it's a walk to the nearest town. They should have a map there" He reasoned and started walking after picking Ares' Helmet, completely forgetting about his newfound ability to fly.

After about an hour of walking, he finally got to a fishing village near a small lake. Happy with his discover, he started to run with new energy, but when he finally got there, he was met with an empty homes and vacated places. It was strange since he could swear he saw lights from the distance. He tried to use his life-sense when a group of black-clad men in tactical gear surrounded him. Their faces were covered by black masks and large black googles. They've all aimed their guns at Neptune, who in response summoned his trident.

"At ease, gentlemen." An unknown voice spoke. An african-american woman walked to the site. She wore a dark-blue suit and had her black hair pulled into a pony-tail. Other men followed her order, but Percy still kept his guard up. After he let it slip with Ra's Al Ghoul some time ago, he was not ready to repeat this mistake like... ever. "My name is Amanda Waller. You are Perseus Jackson, correct?" She did not beat around the subject that's for sure.

Percy pondered the question for a moment. He didn't know if it was worth to try and cover his secret identity. Most villains already knew either way from this bounty or another source. He wanted it mostly to have peace since it's not like he had anyone close here who would be unable to protect themselves. Hell, he would pity anyone who dared to go after his girlfriend. It would probably be their last mistake for a long time. Even if Zoe somewhat tamed in regards to male half of the population, she was still not exactly fond of them.

"There is no point in denying it. Ares transmitted the duel to every screen in the world." She noticed his hesitation and decided to make it easy. "I am curious. Are you the same Perseus from Greek Mythology? The one who killed Medusa?"

"Nah. That Perseus was a son of Zeus." He answered almost instinctively, forgetting that he practically confirmed he was Percy Jackson. Once the realization dawned on him, he cursed in ancient Greek. "There is no more point in denying, is there?"

"No. We knew for a long time. Your less than stellar attempts to hide the massive amounts of money coming into your account raised a lot of red alerts. But that's not why I am here." She sounded like she was holding all the cards. "You see Mister Jackson, the recent events made our government realize that we are entering new age. An age where conventional law enforcement and army will not stand a chance against criminals. That, is why A.R.G.U.S was created."

"Let me guess." Percy interrupted her. "You want me to work for you as some kind of poster boy or did you just consider me 'too powerful for my own good'?" He mocked Zeus speaking.

"Both. The government can't allow someone like you to run around unsupervised. Same goes to your girlfriend, wanted all around the world for terrorist acts." Waller thought this arguments would convince him, but instead was met with wolf stare that would make batman run and hide under the table. She had to take some step back, but Percy followed to stay close and look her directly in the eyes. He had no mask, but she wished he at least had his domino mask on.

"Listen here, lady. I really, and I mean _really,_ don't appreciate threatening people close to me. You and me both know that she is not guilty of anything other than attempting on getting a bunch of jerks in suits to see the real threat instead of fighting. I will make it as clear as I made it for Ra's Al Ghoul. If you try going after my friends, I will make eternity in Tartarus seem like vacation. I am done being an errand boy. Not for Gods, not for Justice League, not for Shadows and certainly not for you." Percy was fuming in anger at the silent threats she made. All the agents, as well as Amanda herself could feel the earth slightly shake and wind pick up. It was as if nature was responding to his emotions. "And if you have some bright idea of ignoring my threat, remember that I just killed someone, who had power at least eleven times that of Superman."

"Very well Mister Jackson." Waller was pissed. It was not how she envisioned this encounter. But she was also scared more than she was willing to admit. "But A.R.G.U.S will still keep a very close eye at you."

"Dully noted. But there is one saying I really like. Sea does not like to be contained and it is dangerous to try. I want you to remember that." He let the threat hand in the air. His expression was now emotionless, which made it all much scarier. "But for now if someone could point me the closest way to the ocean I would very much appreciate." He was all suddenly cheerful. Like sea, which could change from raging waters bringing death to those unfortunate enough to be caught in storm to a clear water with not even a breeze. It also didn't went unnoticed by Waller. This young man was really embodiment of the sea.

"Let me at least offer you a lift." She pointed to chopper closing on their location.

"I just need to find ocean. I have a certain matter to be dealt with in Atlantis."

* * *

**Somewhere in Peruvian Jungle  
November 16, 00:16**

A large group of men in red robes and hoods resembling head of a snake gathered on top of ancient pyramid. They were all unarmed except for a few guards holding a rather simple spears. One of them stepped onto an elevation on which stood an altar. He had a ceremonial dagger made of three metals attached to his belt. One of the set of twins.

"Lord Kobra deceived us. He claimed to be a god, yet in face of true divinity he fell. We followed a false promises and lies. Now, true god rose to power. He defeated Kobra and saved our world from Ares. But dark forces conspired against his ascension. The false god tried to kill him, but failed and ended imprisoned, taking many of his devoted followers with him. But now, in the chaos that true god created for us, we escaped and once again reunited. It is time we abandoned the leadership of this deceiver and instead started to serve the true Exalted One."

Two guards brought a tied figure and placed him on the altar. He was covered in white cloth with black trident on it. The priest pulled off the cover to reveal Kobra. The former leader of the cult was not stripped from almost all his robes and tied tightly.

"But to release us from the taint, we must ensure that it's source was gone." He unsheathed the dagger. Gold and Bronze handle slightly pained his hand, but he ignored it. A small price to pay in exchange of power that came with serving a god. "There used to be two of such daggers, called the fangs of Naga-Naga, but one of them was lost in the battle. May this one serve as a new beginning, for we no longer serve Kobra, who falsely claimed to embody the serpent god."

A dark mist started to gather everywhere around them. It was black and murky. Anyone touched by it suddenly had an uneasy feeling. "I call upon thee, Perseus Jackson. I call you, the highest god! Answer the call of your followers. Cleanse us from the influence of false gods. We submit to your will and give ourselves as whole. We offer you the death of the one who sinned against you as our apology for the trespasses we committed. Take us, oh Exalted One!" With that, the priest plunged his dagger into the heart of Kobra. Man who used to be revered as god let out a pained scream as his life energy escaped. With that deed, black mist in the room shot to the altar and surrounded the body of Kobra. He screamed stronger until it muffled him. His body slowly dissolved into emptiness and in a moment he was gone. Then, the mist flew higher in the air and formed into large ball. It swirled and started to glow white for a moment and suddenly a young girl fell from it. She wore a white, hooded robe and that was pretty much it.

"Perseus?! Azarath! I must find Perseus." She started to look around panicked.

The priest was stunned. He did not expect this to happen. He wanted at least a fraction of power that his god possessed. Instead, there came a girl. She was fourteen, at best fifteen if he had to guess. The priest looked at the other stunned cultists and plan formed in his head. "Behold! A gift from our lord! He sent us a lost soul, so we could guide her to the Sea!" He smiled maliciously. This could work out well. If he didn't get power now, there was still much more earthly benefits of being the high priest. With a wave of a hand he ordered the guards to bring a giant bowl with fire inside. They placed before the stairs leading to the altar, along with new set of robes. They were dark-blue, much like the suit Perseus wore. "As a sign of your loyalty to new god, burn the symbol of your alliegance to Kobra. Throw your clothes into fire and put on the new robes. All hail Perseus!"

"All hail Perseus!" All the other cultists echoed. They then proceeded to do as they were told and replaced their old robes with new set. The girl starred at the whole ordeal scared. She needed to find Percy. He was the only one able to help her.

* * *

**Atlantis  
November 16, 10:39**

After getting a lift to the ocean from Waller, Percy could get to Atlantis in half an hour at worst, but he was not in hurry. He had to rest and recharge, so he willed the currents to take him there while he slept a bit. Being fully submerged in salt water really revitalized him, but he could feel the strain of using so much power catch with him. It was better to rest now than during meeting with Orin. While Aquaman was a rather kind, if a bit prideful king, it would still be rude on Percy's side. Because of that, the whole trip took him almost six hours. Most of this time he spent sleeping.

When he finally arrived, he was awaken by sound of several guns being ready. He opened his eyes and looked at the guards, who eyes him suspiciously. _Guess they don't know me..._ With this thought, he summoned his trident. This actually startled the guards who swam a bit back. "Guys. There is no need to panic. I am a friend of the king."

One of the guards, who looked like he was in charge spoke. "Atlantis is under martial law. No citizen is allowed outside the city borders. Surrender your weapon."

Percy sighted. Normally, it should be impossible underwater, but he liked to show impossible his _podex_. "Look guys. I am a bit in hurry. Do you recognize this trident?" To make a point he waved his weapon around and water around crackled with electricity. "I am Perseus Jackson, son of Poseidon. Be kind guards and let me go to meet King Orin." He was tired. While being in the ocean gave him much more strength, the power boost his dad gave him was slowly fading. For some time he held all the essence of Poseidon, but now it was slowly returning to other worlds to balance the power distribution or something like that. Percy honestly had no idea how it was supposed to work. It was just the most plausible explanation he could come up with.

"E-Excuse m-me Sir. I didn't recognize you..." The one in charge stuttered. The legend of Perseus Jackson was already well-known in Atlantis. "We will of course escort you to the king."

"Thank you. But let's hurry."

* * *

**Transylvania  
November 16, 14:22**

Scarecrow was working day and night for last month. He barely slept, he barely ate. His only real goal was to serve his master, the one who brought fear into hearts of all, whose name made even the most brave flinch. Count Vladimir 'Tepes' Draculestri, the Impaler of Wallachia. He was also known under different name: count Dracula, the first vampire lord. In fact, he was a demigod son of Deimos, the god of dread. He also dabbled with Black Magic. In his search of achieving eternal life, he became what is now known as vampire. Truly, the power he possessed was incredible. At least until the goddess Artemis pierced his heart with silver arrow for seducing and then corrupting maidens into his personal harem of vampires.

Yet now, he returned. The master of fear has came back and chose him as his servant! Doctor Crane was honored. His prolonged exposure to fear gas made him almost immune to this feeling, yet in the presence of his master it returned. The aura of dread around the Count was almost like a drug to him. He lived of it and he would do anything to please him and keep him strong.

This was the reason for his experiments. All of the divine blood he took from the Huntress that memorable night was used to restore his master to life, but he had other materials. The golden dust that remained after the god of fear was his main test subject. He could create weapons of mass intimidation and bring new meaning to his fear gas. Soon, his project would be finished and his master would be able to once again begin the reign of dread and fear.

* * *

**Poseidonis**   
**November 16, 11:03**

True to their word, guards took Percy straight to the royal palace. It still took them some time to get there and he was still drained from his fight with Ares, but it was nothing a good sleep wouldn't fix. But now he had different matters to deal with. As they got closer a group of people came to see them. Orin, Mera and a group of soldiers swam to meet them half-way.

"Percy!" Aquaman cheered. Then, he suddenly got all serious. "My lord." Orin bowed to him. His wive followed his suit. Seeing this, all the other guards did as well. The ones that escorted him felt really uncomfortable with the fact they did not bow when they met him, but they fixed this mistake now. "I've seen your fight with Ares and the whole speech."

The cogs in Percy's mind slowly turned until he got what was this all about. "If you are referring to me claiming dominion over the seas, you don't need to bow. It was a spun of a moment." he then looked at all the guards. "Perhaps it would be better if we talked in private for now?"

"Of course My... Percy." Orin waved the guards off and motioned him to follow him and Mera. "So what exactly brings you here? Do you just want to explore your kingdom or is..."

"I do not plan on taking the throne of Atlantis away from you."He gave the king a cheerful smile, albeit the fact that he was tired was still very obvious. "Right now I just need to get to the Watchtower as soon as possible. I was hoping you could borrow me your credentials."

"Of course. Anything else you need?" Aquaman was glad that the young man did not desire his position, but he still felt a bit uneasy. Percy was after all his superior both in rank, power and legitimacy to rule this kingdom.

"What's the situation? I mean how is the world dealing with all this. After I killed Ares his spells should've lost power." Percy inquired. They swam toward Zeta Gate.

"It's chaos out there. Diplomatic relations between countries are all pretty much as tense as possible. Nobody knows what to do of it. We are still at the brink of war. Several countries are still blaming the Amazons and preparing for war. There is global civil unrest."

"And the League?" Percy had to know why superheroes did nothing to help. They were supposed to inspire, give hope, but it looked like there was nothing of it.

"We can't really do much. The UN charter was abolished. We have no legal right anywhere. Atlantis and Themyscira do still support the League behind the scenes. Sadly with tensions so high, if there was any official stand from either kingdom it would place all heroes in even worse situation."

"So politics stop people from helping... And I thought it was hard with Drama Queen on the throne." Percy sighted as they closed on the transport.

* * *

**The** **Source  
Beyond time and space**

Wally and Artemis walked in uncomfortable silence through weirdest place ever. Under them was a simple yellow road, but that was about it regarding simple. Around them there were shapes that defied the common sense and colors they never seen before. It wasn't like new shade of yellow for spring collection, but rather a colors unlike those known to humans. Things they've seen defied euclidean geometry. Should they had their bodies, both of their minds would meld. Alas the two former heroes were now just a souls wandering to new life.

"Have you wondered where we will end?" Artemis finally broke under the pressure of uncomfortable silence. They both left everything known in favor of living a new life together. Some would say stupid, but she really wished to think it as romantic.

"I don't know babe. The scary dude said it will be earth, but... it definitely won't be our earth." He said after a short brief of thinking. Wally wished he knew, but the very place they stood in defied the laws of science. Everything he believed in was now thrown out of the window.

"Yeah... But it's a good thing, right? We won't need to worry about being heroes anymore. It's like... retirement!" The girl really tried to cheer him up, but also she was trying to reassure herself.

"If only Hades made us billionaires." Wally joked. "But maybe I will become a scientist. Maybe this earth will have lower tech level and I will be a genius."

"And what about me?" She gave him a flirty smile.

"You could be... my pretty assistant." He reciprocated with a grin of his own. It earned him a jab in the shoulder. Even as a soul, it still hurt him.

"As if! What else? Sit at the house and cook?" She was chuckling at the idea.

"Oh, I can sure we can find you something. Maybe... Private investigator? Oh! Oh! I know: a mechanic. You do loved this bike of yours." He remembered.

"Maybe... You could become a comedian. Maybe on different earth there will finally be people to appreciate your sense of humor." He joked.

"That was uncalled for." He frowned, but quickly descended into laugh as well. "You know, maybe we could build our own house in the woods. You know, have a small garden, you could cook, I could build some stuff to help us. We would be completely independent."

"Slow down there Bear Grills. I like hot water too much. And you could bath more often too." She teased.

"Whatever you wish babe." He chuckled. Then, he grabbed her hand and squeezed it slightly. "It will be okay. As long as we are together."

"As long as we are together." She repeated. Then, they walked together in silence, but it was no longer uncomfortable type. This time, they were happy at the prospect of the future. Neither could change anything about the past, but at least one thing was certain about the future: they would walk there together.

* * *

**Watchtower  
November 16, 11:59**

Percy and Orin exited the Zeta Tube and saw several leaguers gathered in the room. They all looked worry and seemed to be anxiously waiting for something. Their faces were all focused on a holo-screen, but Percy couldn't exactly see what it was. He decided to make himself notices and coughed loudly. Instantly, all of the gathered heroes looked at him. Many of them looked beaten or tired, not unlike him.

"Excuse me for interrupting, but I really need to address few matters." Percy started. His demeanor was tired, but they heard a tingle of irritation in his voice. "You are the Justice League, right?" The question took them by surprise. Not even Aquaman exactly knew where this was going, but he did nothing to interrupt. "Then instead of sitting here and brooding go and inspire people. The world is in chaos, divided, broken. People need a symbol. Something that will give them hope for better, brighter future." The words came to Percy as he spoke. He had no idea if it was part of Apollo's blessing or just the seaweed in his brain was finally starting to be of some use, but he didn't care. "Doomsday has ended, Ares is gone probably now for ever, but they are unsure about the future. They are afraid of the uncertainties. Like wounded animals they run and lash out on others, trying to save themselves. You are supposed to be the light in the darkness. The hope. Beacon of Truth, Justice and Cooperation. Diana told me that the league existed partially as a reminder that there are threats bigger than one person. It is time for you to spread this message." He finished, but others looked not much convinced. Captain Atom walked to him.

"While I appreciate what you tried to do Perce, you don't understand the complexity of this. Legally, the league can't do anything. We..." He never finished, because Percy just chuckled.

"I learned that when it comes to saving people, it's better to break the rules, save them and ask for forgiveness than to wait for permission and try to save what remained." Percy remembered how he sneaked to save Annabeth from Luke's forces. He smiled. It was so long ago. So many things have changed.

"Still, we won't really be able to inspire much." Flash chimed in. "We are severely undermanned and Superman _died_ not even 48 hours ago. Morales can't get lower." Inside, Barry was cursing himself for sitting here while the world needed him, but he was not planning on leaving Iris while he sat in prison. One Allen criminal was enough.

"Actually, it's not exactly true." Suddenly, a new voice joined them. On screen appeared face of Nico Di Angelo. They had no idea how he managed to hack into this thing, but he was there and he was smiling. "Well, he did die, but he won't stay dead. He wouldn't anyway, but that's not the point." This earned more confusion, even from Percy. Nico loved seeing all the heroes trying to work out the meaning.

"Who are you?" Batman was first to shake the confusion.

"Nico. The god of Magic, Mist, et cetera. Also, ambassador of Hades. Think of me as anti-klarion." He smiled, thinking about how angry this pratty lord of Chaos would get once he heard that there was another immortal magician with a cat as a familiar. To remind about himself, the anchor Nico so creatively named Zard meowed. "Oh Shut up. Five minutes won't make a difference and it was long time since I had this much fun. Back to the subject. My father allowed me to summon the soul of one Clark Kent back to this world sooner than normally. So here you go." He adjusted the camera so that they could see both him and (now recovered and placed on the bed) body of Superman. The eyes of God of magic glowed purple and suddenly Clark sat straight up breathing heavily. Everyone had their eyes wide open. "Now onto with the show." Nico snapped his fingers and Superman and himself appeared in person on the watchtower. Zard was there too, but he decided to hide behind his patron. A 'former' villain was not quite ready to meet the stares from Justice League.

"What... I... How... Who... What!?" Superman was in shock. The last thing he remembered before waking up and appearing in front of all his colleagues was his body being pierced by doomsday.

"I resurrected you." Nico simply stated. "Now excuse me while I go far away from people. It's not that I don't like you, but I don't." He was enveloped by purple mist and soon only thing that was left after Nico disappeared were a bit of fumes from his exit.

"Charming type, isn't he?" Green Arrow joked. Percy smiled at his cousin's antics.

"I said what I wanted, you will do what you want with it, now I think I should finally go to sleep. See you tomorrow." He turned, but Captain Atom stopped him.

"Wait. I wanted to thank you. For everything. You saved the world today." He saluted him, to which New God smiled and reciprocated.

"Thank you Captain. I did what had to be done. Now it's your turn to fix what Ares destroyed."

"Yes, but I believe we should meet again to discuss you joining us on more permanent basis." He offered his hand, but Percy did not take it.

"Pass." This earned a surprise grasp from everyone. "When I first arrived, I thought joining the League would allow me to help people better. I thought that being a part of this would make helping easier. But recent mess made me realize that it would only hamper me. If you ever need my help, you know where to find me."

"And so do the rest of the world." Captain tried to reason.

"I don't believe anyone will try to go after me and should they try anything funny with Zoe... I pity them." He smiled maliciously, imagining what his girlfriend would do to such person. Without waiting for further reaction, Percy took Zeta Beam to Jump City and wanted to finally get some rest.

* * *

**OA**

The guardians felt a wave of pure rage travel the universe. It could mean only one thing: the Old God of war died. But there was more than just that. There was another, more powerful ripple. Yet again in such a short timespan an Old God has faded and New God was born. But this one was more powerful than previous. It meant, that he would upset the balance of forces. He was going to be a dangerous player if he was left without supervision. Someone who could either be a great ally or worst enemy.

"Should we contact him?" One of the guardians asked.

"No. I do not believe so. If he is anything like the one we met not so long ago, it would be best to wait until he would listen. Right now earth is still in chaos after the plots of the Old God."

"I agree. But it is time to send their lanterns back. They might be needed."

"Unless miss Nightshade kill them in outburst of rage at us." One of them snarled.

"She is not as bad as you paint her. I see a potential in her." The guardian named Gareth spoke.

"You and your 'potential'. What is it that you see in them that we don't?"

"Hope." Gareth simply replied.

* * *

**Jump City**   
**November 16, 12:39**

Percy was drained. He really wanted to sleep. After he opened the doors to his house, he planned on going straight to his room, but instead he was met with beautiful eyes of Zoe Nightshade. She was still in her superhero attire and she was sitting on the armchair that was turned at the doors. She also looked tired, but not as much as him.

"Percy! I worried about thee!" She instinctively reverted to her old way of speaking. While normally she could use modern English quite well, in times when she was angry, tired or worried, it seemed like she forgot the changes. "I hath seen the battle with Ares. What were thou thinking?" She was scolding him like a worried mother, except she was a worried girlfriend instead. The frown on her face was scary, but Percy still feared her less than his mother. Zoe couldn't take away his blue cookies privilege.

"I know. I know. This was reckless, stupid and..." He didn't have time to finish because she smacked him in the head.

"That is for you being an idiot!" She then hugged him tightly. "...and that is for surviving." He smiled and embraced her as well. They stayed like that for few minutes before deciding to sit on the couch together to exchange stories. Zoe explained how she traveled through the universe and back to get help against Ares after she saw that there was nothing humans alone could do, while he told her about the events here on earth. When she heard about he went against Ares without any power, she smacked him several times until he calmed her and reminded that this was one of rare situations he actually had a plan: use the essence from his father to return to power and take Ares by surprise. He then explained her about what his father told him and what happened. She hugged him, trying to comfort him. For the first time since then, Percy allowed himself to grieve over the fading of Poseidon. He had no time for it before and he had to stay strong to finish up the matter with Justice League.

Poseidon wasn't the best dad of the year, but Percy knew he tried. Even with the Ancient Laws, with Zeus throwing a hissy-fit over every contact and with all the standard absent-parent problems, he did the best he could. Percy wouldn't replace his father with any other god. Poseidon did help him and in the end, he sacrificed himself to make sure his son could be safe. That was more than anyone could ask of him. There were things that Percy wished he said to him, but he never could. The last words remained embed strong in his mind. _'I can only say that I am really proud of you my son. You are better than all of us ever will...'_

Later, Percy would say he shed some tears. But back then, in the embrace of Zoe Nightshade, the woman who he really liked (not yet daring to use the word love), he allowed himself to be vulnerable. He let his guard down and cried. The pain of loss finally caught up with him. It wasn't that real before. When he came to this world, he had the thought in the back of his head that his friends and family were still alive, just not here. But over this relatively short time he spent here, he came to care for people. Some of whom were gone. Artemis was killed and replaced by mindless pupped under Ares' control. Wally was MIA, probably killed by what he believed to be his girlfriend. Finally, Poseidon, his father, sacrificed himself to allow Percy to defeat Ares. The New God couldn't help but wonder. What would it be like if he never came here. What would it be like if he arrived in different world. Would Ares still come here? Would Artemis die? _Would Zoe be alive? Could his friends survive the encounter with Injustice League?_ He had no way of answering that questions.

Zoe sat there patiently. She could understand how much weight was now on Percy's shoulders. She remembered when her mistress passed. She also mourned, but in solitude. Back then she wished she had someone to talk to or to simply be there for her. Now she was there for him. She wanted to reassure him, tell him that not everything is lost, but for now she just hugged him and let all the pain get out of him. The TV was playing a calming music until suddenly the screen changed to show Superman, Wonder Woman and Batman. The big blue scout spoke.

_"The last few days can be summed up as the end of the world. All of us were affected. Not even heroes could be immune. Not even I was invulnerable. But we prevailed. I know that you might be scared, confused, angry or many other things. I am scared too. We faced a threat unlike those before. It was aimed at our sense of unity, at our very core values. The enemy aimed to divide us."_

Next was Wonder Woman. _"Ares, a being feeding on conflict sought to enslave everyone on this planet. He believed that we would fight each other until only those loyal to him would stand strong. He wanted to use each of us as a mean to his goal. And he would succeed, was it not for my cousin. He stopped him, but now it's up to us to deal with the fallout."_

Batman continued where the Amazon left off. _"The Justice League was first created after the Appellaxian invasion. Seven heroes answered the distress call. Back then, for the first time we realized that no single hero can solve every problem, that even the strongest of us might need help. That is why the League was created. We stood as a symbol that through teamwork nothing is impossible."_

Superman got the voice yet again. _"Now we call to you, common citizens and world leaders alike. Do not succumb to negative feelings, but instead help us rebuild what was destroyed. Through empathy and kindness we can restore the trust and good relationships. The wounds won't heal immediately, but I believe in you all that we can still thrive. The 'S' on my chest was a symbol of hope on my planet. After I came here, it became symbol of hope on Earth as well. Now I place my hope in all of you. One man can start the change, but it requires many to embrace it."_

There might have been more to this speech, but neither Percy nor Zoe heard it. They both fell asleep in each other embrace... yet again.

* * *

**The END  
KONIEC**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N That was... hard. Writing over 175k words that make some sense was something I never planned on doing. This whole project started as a thing I wrote during NaNoWriMo 2019. It began as a simple prompt: Character from your favorite Book is transported to your favorite TV series. With the book part it was easy, but I could not decide on my favorite TV series. I was never fond of naming something favorite. With me it's either like/dislike thing. It just so happened that I was in the process of watching Season 3 of YJ back then and decided 'why not?'. Then I crossed the 50k threshold and I wasn't even remotely done, while at the same time accumulating a quite large fanbase. I continued and in time it became what it is today. I am sure there are things I could do better. This story is by no means masterpiece, but it is the first time I am really writing something serious (My previous drabble is more like a plan than actual story). Still, I hope you enjoyed reading this even half as much as I enjoyed writing.
> 
> Regarding my next story, as I announced it will be Winter Sea (PJO x RWBY crossover) I find it easier to write crossovers than simple fics so that's what I will stick to for now. I already have it planned and probably I will start writing soon enough. I can't promise when the first chapter get published and I am still in the process of looking for a Beta Reader. If anyone wants to volunteer, I check the PM box quite frequently.
> 
> You were all amazing readers with all the reviews and follows and favorites. As of me writing this, Hero's Journey is the fourth most favorite in PJO x YJ. Not bad if you ask me and definitely better than I expected. There is also over 90k views, which is about 1000 times more than I expected when I started writing. I am proud of what I achieved and I want to continue with developing my writing skill. Follows brought smile to my face, favorites made me happier and reviews often made my days.
> 
> Thank you for reading this, even if it was flawed.

**Author's Note:**

> If you have any questions or suggestions, be my guest :) R&R, see you later.
> 
> I'm now on DISCORD! I made my own writer's server that you're free to join if you want a convo with me or something :)   
> https://discord.gg/DrYhsWnh75


End file.
